By
MEREDITH HAAS/ecoRI.org News contributor
In the past
decade the world has seen a tremendous population explosion and increasing
demands for resources to feed all the mouths at the table.
And while conflicts
for space and resources is nothing new for the history books, the extent to
which the ocean is used and who, or what, is actually out there has surprised
scientists, resource managers and policymakers alike.
“The
oceans are becoming more crowded,” Sally Yozell, director of policy and senior
advisor at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), said
during the 11th annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium held May 16
at the University
of Rhode Island ’s
Feinstein campus.
She added that new uses of ocean spaces are being added on
top of traditional uses, asking, “How do we balance those uses with
safeguarding the environment?”
“We knew
virtually nothing. We knew a little about the circulation and stratification,
but nothing about the habitat,” said Grover Fugate, director of the state
Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC), referring to the Rhode Island
Ocean Special Area Management Plan (Ocean
SAMP).
The state’s offshore waters have been the focus of a two-year
study to figure out what is actually out there, to preserve existing uses and
environmental health while also paving a way for future development.
Fellow
colleagues joined Fugate and Yozell as part of an international host of
resource managers at the symposium, to discuss various methods of marine spatial
planning, share what they were finding out in the waters of their own
respective coastlines, and talk about how they were managing multiple human
activities such as marine transportation and fishing while preserving a healthy
marine and coastal environment.
“Marine
spatial planning is both a process and a product,” said Jake Rice, from the
Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans. “It engages people at all levels
and is a guide on how uses can coexist with a healthy environment. It allows
prosperity we all want to see.”
There
isn’t one right way to manage spaces, Rice said, because each place is
different and, when decisions are made, not everyone is going to be happy. The
important thing is that everyone felt the process was fair. “You can’t say outcomes
are a win-win because not everyone is going to feel that way,” he said.
The
symposium was held in Rhode Island
mainly due to the large steps this small state has taken to produce a plan for
managing ocean spaces. The Ocean SAMP is the first of its kind in the nation,
and is being viewed as a model for many coastal communities worldwide.
The
Rhode Island Ocean SAMP study area includes portions of Block
Island Sound , Rhode Island Sound
and the Atlantic Ocean , and is being eyed for
potential offshore wind development.
The effort has produced myriad maps of the
various activities, from fishing and transportation to sailing and wildlife
migrations, showcasing a checkered landscape of limited space with competing
uses.
“Without
the Ocean SAMP, developers would propose to develop anywhere,” said Jennifer
McCann, co-principle investigator on the project and extension leader of Rhode
Island Sea Grant and the Coastal Resources Center
at the University
of Rhode Island . She
added that the Ocean SAMP is a management tool not a promoter of one special
interest.
“The
benefit of the Ocean SAMP is that it has provided all the information that most
any developer would need and therefore accelerates the development process,”
Grover said. “The research has been done, the conflicts have been dealt with
and a lot of consensus has been reached. We will have three years of critical
data sets while other places start from scratch.”
The key
elements of the Ocean SAMP that other practitioners all agree are critical for
successful management are a comprehensive database and stakeholder engagement
that adds critical information of cultural and historical relevance.
Doug
Harris of the Narragansett Tribe spoke about how important stakeholder
engagement was not only for his tribe but also for other interested parties.
“Tribes
in the U.S.
most often don’t get a front seat in the process,” he said, noting what an
important experience it was to be involved and contribute oral histories that
share a place beside science. “Fishermen are from the same community. They may
come from different sectors, but we’re all going to sink or swim in this. What
will the future be for my grandchildren and theirs?”
“There
are many compelling reasons for marine spatial planning,” said Paul Gilliland,
from the Marine
Management Organisation in
the United Kingdom ,
stressing the importance of local engagement to meet the needs of different
types of coastal communities.
It’s a
developmental process, he said, because marine spatial planning is new so
mistakes will be made. But planning ahead and keeping an open dialogue will
keep everyone moving forward. “We have a lot to learn from one another and need
to keep talking,” he said.