Pilot Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan. Consultation Analysis and Modifications Report.
The Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan is a pilot process undertaken by a working group consisting of Marine Scotland, Orkney Islands Council and Highland Council in advance of statutory regional marine planning. This report presents an
12. General Policy 3: Climate change
12.1 Summary of responses received
| Stakeholder | Count |
|---|---|
| Commercial | 2 |
| Fisheries and aquaculture | 1 |
| Individual | 1 |
| Non-governmental organisation | 1 |
| Public sector | 3 |
| Recreation | 2 |
| TOTAL | 10 |
12.2 Main themes
12.2.1 Two stakeholders (public sector and non-governmental organisation) highlighted areas where they felt some rewording was required in relation to the use of the word 'mitigation' and 'adaptation'.
12.2.2 Two stakeholders (public sector and fisheries sector) noted that the designation of Marine Protected Areas are not an adaptation measure and are in place to protect priority marine species.
12.2.3 Some stakeholders supported the policy and highlighted areas where their own sector has taken action to minimise greenhouse gases.
12.2.4 One response from the recreation sector provided comments that climate change could result in increased storminess and less suitable conditions for recreational boating. This respondent provided a reference to a study that had been carried out on this issue.
12.2.5 There were two responses from the renewable energy sector. One queried why paragraph 156 singled out wave and tidal sectors when aquaculture and oil and gas would have the same issue. This respondent also felt there should be mention of the potential impact on commercial fisheries. The other respondent did not feel that this policy added anything of substance beyond the National Marine Plan GEN 5.
Table 12.1 General Policy 3 Climate change - Table of suggested modifications
| No. | Suggested modification | Action taken | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| 129 | Suggest changing 'the Plan will support' to 'developments will be supported where'. | POLICY TEXT: Amended to 'Development will be supported by the Plan where the proposal can demonstrate appropriate…'. | To accommodate request. |
| 130 | Suggest moving the information regarding the change in shipping routes from the Information Box 5 to the 'Future considerations' section. | INFORMATION BOX 5: Last sentence in the information box removed and added to the end of paragraph 160 in the Future Considerations section. | To accommodate request. |
| 131 | Suggested change of text in Para. 155 to "These established sectors also undertake mitigation measures to reduce both costs and climate change impacts. Examples include more efficient fuel use…and locating new infrastructure so that impacts on saltmarsh, kelp beds, sea grass beds and coastal peatland are avoided" | PARAGRAPH 155: Fourth and fifth sentences amended as suggested: 'These established sectors also undertake mitigation measures to reduce both costs and climate change impacts. Examples include more efficient fuel use for shipping and locating new infrastructure so that impacts on saltmarsh, kelp beds, sea grass beds and coastal peatland are avoided'. | To accommodate request. |
| 132 | Correction to text referring to movement of dolphins to accurately reflect information in the reference. | INFORMATION BOX 5: Third sentence changed to 'For example, Atlantic white-sided dolphins are moving northward out of UK waters and short-beaked common dolphins are being sighted in the Northern North Sea and northern most part of the Scottish Continental Shelf more regularly. | For accuracy. |
| 133 | Noted that text conflates mitigation and adaptation and suggests the following changes in the policy text: Bullet one, suggest "the mitigation measures taken to reduce carbon emissions" Additional bullet "the measures taken to adapt to climate change" Additional bullet "measures that ensure that habitats that store and capture carbon are not adversely affected" |
INFORMATION BOX 6: Amended to: 'Mitigation' refers to measures to reduce emissions of carbon and other greenhouse gasses or to remove them from the atmosphere. 'Adaptation' refers to measures to adjust infrastructure or natural systems to provide resilience to the harmful consequences of climate change ( e.g. better coastal protection against storm surges). POLICY TEXT: Amend first bullet to: 'measures to mitigate the effects of climate change' Second bullet amended to: 'measures taken to adapt to climate change' Third bullet: unchanged |
To accommodate request and provide clarity. |
| 134 | Suggested change of text to 'mitigation measures and adaption to climate change', instead of 'mitigation measures taken to adapt to the effects of climate change'. | See above. | As above. |
| 135 | Noted that designation of Marine Protected Areas is not an adaptation measure and the text should reflect this. | See above. | As above. |
| 136 | Para. 156. Suggestion that other industries could be mentioned here e.g. aquaculture, oil and gas and commercial fisheries. | INFORMATION BOX 6: Text amended as above and reference to Marine Protected Areas removed. | To accommodate request and provide clarity. |
| 137 | Change 'mitigation measures taken to adapt to the effects of climate change' to 'mitigation measures and adaptation to climate change'. | PARAGRAPH 156: Text added to end of paragraph 'and other marine infrastructure'. | To accommodate request. |
Contact
There is a problem
Thanks for your feedback