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COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT A DRAFT POLICY FOR IRELAND MAIN REPORT BRADY SHIPMAN MARTIN in association with HR Wallingford Natural Environmental Consultants Ltd. COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT A DRAFT POLICY FOR IRELAND MAIN REPORT Prepared for Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands Department of the Environment and Local Government Department of the Marine and Natural Resources by BRADY SHIPMAN MARTIN in association with HR Wallingford and Natural Environment Consultants Ltd. STUDY TEAM The study was carried out by a team of consultants from BRADY SHIPMAN MARTIN in association with HR Wallingford and Natural Environment Consultants Ltd. The team also included Dr. Susan Gubbay, an acknowledged international expert in the field of Coastal Zone Management. BRADY SHIPMAN MARTIN 26 Temple Road Dartry DUBLIN 6 © Government of Ireland 1997 Price: £10.00 COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT A DRAFT POLICY FOR IRELAND TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION 1 BACKGROUND AND CURRENT SITUATION 2. THE CONCEPT OF COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT 5 3. THE INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT 15 4. LEGISLATION AND ADMINISTRATION 33 5. CONSERVATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 43 6. LAND-USE PLANNING AND CONTROL 63 7. COASTAL RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT 71 8. MARINE RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT 89 9. COASTAL PROTECTION 113 ISSUES AND RECOMMENDATIONS 10. KEY ISSUES 121 11. THE NEED FOR ICZM 129 12. THE SCOPE FOR ACTION 133 13. THE RECOMMENDED FRAMEWORK 141 14. OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS 155 APPENDICES 1. DESCRIPTION OF THE COASTLINE Appendices 1 2. DRAFT ICZM PLAN WORK PROGRAMME Appendices 17 3. BIBLIOGRAPHY Appendices 29 4. LIST OF CONSULTEES AND SUBMISSIONS Appendices 39 LIST OF FIGURES 2.1 Definition of the Coastal Zone (A) 2.2 Definition of the Coastal Zone (B) 2.3 Evolution of Coastal Zone Management 5.1 Designated Coastal Special Protection Areas 6.1 Coastal Local Authorities 7.1 Designated Seaside Resorts 7.2 Harbour Authorities 8.1 Fishing Harbours and Fisheries Boards 8.2 Principal Aquaculture Locations 9.1 Coastal Erosion/Accretion 14.1 Coastal Cells/Major Planning Units Glossary of Abbreviations BIM Bord Iascaigh Mhara MARPOL International Convention for the Prevention CAMPNET Coastal Area Management and Planning of Pollution by Ships Network MHWM Mean High Water Mark CAP Common Agricultural Policy MLVC Marine Licence Vetting Committee CIE Coras Iompair Eireann NGO Non-Government Organisation CFP Common Fisheries Policy NHA (Proposed) Natural Heritage Area CNCC Council for Nature Conservation and the Countryside NI Northern Ireland CSF Community Support Framework NMHPS National Monuments and Historic Property Service of Department of Arts, Heritage, CSO Central Statistics Office Gaeltacht and the Islands CZM Coastal Zone Management NPWS National Parks and Wildlife Service of Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht DED District Electoral Division and the Islands EEA European Environment Agency OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development EEC European Economic Community OPW Office of Public Works EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone OSPAR Convention for the Protection of the Marine EIA Environmental Impact Assessment Environment of the North-East Atlantic EPA Environmental Protection Agency REPS Rural Environment Protection Scheme ESA Environmentally Sensitive Area RTO Regional Tourism Organisation ETC/MC European Marine & Coastal Environmental SAC Special Area of Conservation Topic Centre SMT Software Management Tool EU European Union SPA Special Protection Area FAO Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations TAC Total Allowable Catch FRC Fisheries Research Centre UCC University College Cork GESAMP Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific UCG University College Galway Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection UDC Urban District Council GIS Geographical Information System UK United Kingdom ICES International Council for the Exploration of UN United Nations the Sea UNCLOS United Nations Conference on the Law of ICZM Integrated Coastal Zone Management the Sea IMO International Maritime Organisation UNEP United Nations Environmental Programme IMES Irish Marine Emergency Services UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organisation IPC Integrated Pollution Control USA United States of America IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change WTO World Tourism Organisation IUCN International Union for the Conservation of WWF World Wide Fund for Nature Nature and Natural Resources 1. INTRODUCTION This report was jointly commissioned by the Department of the Environment and Local Government, the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources and the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands to provide a coherent framework for the co-ordinated and sustainable management of coastal areas. The report, prepared by consultants, is intended to provide a key input to the formulation of national policy on Coastal Zone Management and to stimulate debate and discussion among interested parties and the public. 1.1 Ireland has a long and varied coastline for a country of its size. Almost 60 per cent of the total population reside in coastal areas, which include the greatest concentrations of population, and the major cities. Moreover, much of the country's industry is concentrated on or near the coast. The Irish coastal zone also contains many sensitive ecosystems of considerable nature conservation and amenity value. 1.2 The coastal zone is therefore of great significance to the country, and a valuable national asset. It contains important resources that provide economic, recreational, aesthetic and conservation benefits, and is also the access to a vast marine resource that includes fisheries, aquaculture, minerals and hydrocarbons. The coastal zone is a finite resource that has been considerably developed, and that is under increasing pressure and competition for further development and use. 1.3 This important resource, in common with the rest of the country, is managed by a range of agencies and organisations. However, the management of the coastal zone is distinguished by: • great complexity and variety arising from the combination and interaction of land and sea; • the variety and importance of the resources that the zone contains, and its importance as an access route for people and trade; • the importance of coastal ecosystems in themselves, and in their interaction with other marine and terrestrial ecosystems; • the variety and extent of social and economic demands on the zone, and the scale of growth in these demands; • legislative and administrative structures that are largely split along the land/sea divide; and • anticipated impacts of sea level rise, changing weather patterns, etc. 1.4 A strong case can, therefore, be made to accord the coastal zone a special status, and to devise and implement measures to ensure a more holistic and integrated approach to its management in the future. This is in the interests of coastal communities, the wider community-at-large and the environment. 1 Introduction PURPOSE OF STUDY AND REPORT 1.5 The principal central government departments concerned with the management of the coastal zone are the Department of the Environment and Local Government, the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources and the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands. These departments, recognising the special needs of the coastal zone, jointly commissioned this report to provide a coherent framework for the co-ordinated and sustainable management of coastal areas. The document is intended to provide a key input to the formulation of national policy on Coastal Zone Management (CZM), and includes draft recommendations in this regard. 1.6 A synopsis of the report has been issued as a Discussion Document, intended for widespread public dissemination. 1.7 The scope of the study is outlined in the Brief to the Consultants. In summary, the Brief covered the following items: i) to review relevant developments on Coastal Zone Management at international level and in particular developments at EU level; ii) to review and assess the present situation in Ireland in relation to Coastal Zone Management with particular regard to the main areas of land use planning and control, legislation, coastal protection, nature conservation, marine resource development (aquaculture and in-shore fisheries), environmental protection and the extent to which these issues influence national and local planning, nature conservation, infrastructural development, etc.; iii) to identify current issues affecting the coastal zone in Ireland and identify how they are dealt with in the policies and procedures of other EU member states; and iv) against this background, to make recommendations for a National Coastal Zone Management Policy for Ireland. 1.8 The document takes a strategic view, concentrating on matters of policy, cohesion and co-ordination, mainly at a macro level. It provides a draft structure for the development of a comprehensive, harmonised management policy for the entire coastal zone, integrating the seaward and landward sides and providing a framework for conservation and sustainable use. 1.9 The framework embraces land-use planning and control, coastal protection, nature conservation, marine resource development, marine environmental protection and the links between these. STRUCTURE OF REPORT 1.10 The links between the scope of the study and the structure of the report are outlined in Table 1A. The background and current situation is assessed in Chapters 2 to 9, whilst Chapters 10 to 14 outline the key issues, discuss some options and