The Marine and Coastal Access Bill
The Marine and Coastal Access Bill is currently at the Committee stage in the House of Lords. It introduces a new UK wide marine planning system to allow the Government to set a clear direction for how it will make the best use of marine resources. It will introduce simpler licensing of marine developments such as offshore wind farms. The aim is to introduce a new framework for the seas based on marine spatial planning to balance conservation, energy and resource needs.
The key issues covered by the bill are:
Marine Management Organisation
An independent body called the Marine Management Organisation will be created. It will be the marine planning body and will also be the regulator and strategic delivery body for marine development.
The intention is that by having one body which is responsible for the marine area it will be able to balance all the competing interests and demands that are placed on our coastal waters. For example, the MMO would be responsible for issuing consents under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 for offshore generating stations (unless they are so large that they would constitute a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project). The MMO would also be responsible for issuing notices under section 95 of the Energy Act 2004 to declare a safety zone around an offshore generating station. So far so good, it is sensible to have the same body dealing with both. However, the MMO is also going to be responsible for conservation, for example under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Sea Fisheries (Wildlife Conservation) Act 1992.
The Government is going to need to make it very clear how the MMO is to balance, what at times may be competing duties, in order to reach a decision on new marine projects.
Planning in the marine area
At present policy for marine based projects is being developed sector by sector which makes it difficult for decision makers to know what the priorities should be when deciding whether to approve a project. To overcome this, the bill sets out the intention for the long term objectives for the marine area around the UK to be set in a Marine Policy Statement. Marine Plans will then be created to set more detailed and spatial policy at a more local level based on information about specific areas and their uses of the sea. The Government intends the first Marine Plans to be in place within two years of Royal Assent for the Marine Bill.
The creation of the Marine Management Organisation and the national Marine Policy Statement will undoubtedly lead to more joined up thinking about how best to use the coastal waters around the UK.
Licensing
The current licensing system is slow and complex. The bill proposes simplifying it to create, so far as possible, a one stop shop for each project. The intention is to look at applications in the round, to consider all the costs and benefits at the same time in order to make better decisions. Once the bill becomes law, a licence will be needed for:
- All vessels, aircraft or structures, regardless of their country of origin, to deposit, scuttle or incinerate any object or substance within the UK marine licensing area;
- All vessels, aircraft or structures, regardless of their country of origin, to begin towing in the UK marine licensing area; and
- British vessels, aircraft or structures to deposit, scuttle or incinerate any object or substance anywhere at sea.
Marine nature conservation zones
Marine nature conservation zones will be designated both for the protection of individual habitats and species and also for the creation of a network of sites representing marine ecosystems around the UK. Designation will take account of environmental, social and economic criteria. The bill also provides for measures to stop activities from damaging sites once they have been designated.
Modernisation and streamlining of enforcement powers
A civil sanctions scheme will be introduced for licensing and nature conservation offences and an administrative penalties scheme for domestic fisheries offences. In combination with enforcement tools ranging from advice to prosecution, these will give the ability to address offences in a proportionate, flexible and risk based manner. Officers enforcing fisheries, nature conservation and licensing legislation will have access to a core set of enforcement powers to inspect sites and investigate offences.
Conclusion
The bill aims to improve decision making in the marine environment by providing clearer direction and more certainty to everyone, from developers in industry to local Government and to marine users in general. It streamlines and simplifies existing legislation and requirements. It reduces the number of regulatory bodies and regimes that developers have to deal with. However, it does not reduce environmental impact assessments as these are key to ensuring an understanding of how certain activities impact on the marine environment.
This article was first published in Planning Magazine on 6 February 2009.
