A STRATEGY FOR SCOTLAND'S COAST AND INSHORE WATERS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Scottish Coastal Forum (SCF) has set out to create a national strategy for the sustainable use of Scotland's coast and inshore waters. The aims are to take stock of the resources and key management issues and then look beyond the short term to develop an influential vision based on a 25-year forward view. The process of developing the strategy in an inclusive manner has been seen as valuable in itself to build coherence and synergy in coastal policy and management, whilst taking into account the needs of all sectors and the EU's encouragement for the development of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM).
The strategy is designed to be an advisory document for Scottish Ministers, providing guidance on implementation of ICZM in Scotland. The SCF intends to continue with recommendations for an implementation plan to follow up the objectives and actions, working in partnership with the lead agencies and bodies identified.
Scotland's coastal zone is notable in both a UK and a European context for its scale and variety. The coastline is long relative to the country's size and often highly indented, with island archipelagos to both the north and west. The distribution of these islands gives Scotland one of the largest inshore areas (within 12 nautical miles of the coast) of any country in the EU. There are both longstanding problems and emerging issues concerning the management of the coastal zone. These include declining fish stocks undermining the long-term interests of fishing communities and biodiversity, the accommodation and integration of different forms of aquaculture; the integration of marine nature conservation into use of the coastal zone, implications of sea level rise and increased coastal erosion in some areas, the location of renewable energy installations on the coast or offshore and water quality issues.
Planning and management systems need to address the significant interrelationships between use of the sea and use of the land and rivers adjacent. Furthermore, the competition between and limitations of single-sector management are becoming more obvious as the range of interests in inshore waters increases and more time and energy has to be spent on applying for licences, impact assessment and resolving conflicts.
ICZM is a process that brings together all those involved in the development, management and use of the coast within a framework that facilitates the integration of their interests and responsibilities. The objective is to establish sustainable levels of economic and social activity in coastal areas while protecting the coastal environment.
To aid an understanding of the challenges, this report looks at each of the main uses and interests in the coastal and inshore zone in turn. It highlights the key coastal management issues in relation to these and it identifies the common themes which emerge. To provide a frame of reference for what Scotland could and should aim to achieve, the report also looks at examples of good practice in ICZM from Scotland, the UK and abroad. These two assessments provide the basis for the key objectives of the SCF strategy.
The key themes of the strategy are integration, spatial planning and decision-making, leadership, value and resources, working with dynamic processes, and stakeholder participation. Specific objectives are set out under each of these, along with recommended actions for their delivery.
The Scottish Coastal Forum aims to promote the implementation of the actions identified. This will involve discussions with lead bodies and partners identified in the actions to investigate how these actions may be taken forward. It will be important to monitor two aspects of implementation:
a) Delivering the actions - in other words assessing the process of delivering this Strategy.
b) Achieving improved Coastal Zone Management and securing healthy ecosystems, sustainable economies and thriving communities - ie monitoring the outcomes of implementing the actions in this Strategy.