Irish Sea Maritime Forum

The Draft North West Inshore and Offshore Marine Plan will help to make sure the right activities occur in the right place, at the right time, and in the right way placing sustainable development at the centre of all decisions. The plan will provide a framework that will shape and inform decisions over how the areas’ waters are developed, protected and improved over the next 20 years. In doing so, the draft plans will help to safeguard and enhance the marine environment, improve the well-being of coastal communities and support a strong marine economy. The Draft Marine Plan will contribute to achievement of the Marine Policy Statement.

North West Inshore and Offshore marine Plan Poster

Ireland are currently in the process of consulting on the Draft National Marine Planning Framework and would welcome feedback from ISMF members. The consultation will close at 12:00 noon on Thursday 9th April 2020. All documents are available online: https://www.housing.gov.ie/planning/marine-planning/public-consultation-draft-national-marine-planning-framework.

The Department for Housing, Planning and Local Government are holding the following series of regional public events:

12/02/2020 18:00 – 20:00 Arklow Bay Hotel, Arklow, Co.Wicklow, Y14 DX02 Offshore Renewable Energy

17/02/2020 11:00 – 13:00 St Laurence’s, Technological University Dublin, Grange Gorman, Dublin, D07 E244 Marine Environment

02/03/2020 18:00 – 20:00 School of Tourism, Letterkenny Institute of Technology Campus, Shore Road, Killybegs, Co. Donegal, F94 DV52 Fisheries

23/03/2020 18:00 – 20:00 Kinsale Hotel and Spa, Rathmore, Co. Cork, P17 F542 Fisheries

31/03/2020 18:00 – 20:00 Wexford Town Library, Mallin Street, Ferrybank South, Wexford, Y35 AY20 Ports and Harbours

We are very sorry to circulate news from the Clyde Marine Planning Partnership about the death of Isabel Glasgow. Isabel chaired the second ISMF biennial conference which took place in the Tall Ship in Glasgow in 2013. She was a kind supporter of ISMF activities. Her presence and encouragement will be sadly missed.

Over the past month there have been updates released regarding both the Irish and Welsh Marine Plans.

Update on Welsh Marine Plan

In Wales on 12 November the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths published Wales’ first Marine Plan. This sets out Welsh Government’s policy for the next 20 years for the sustainable use of our seas. We also publish with the plan:

Summary of Changes to plan following draft WNMP
Habitats Regulation Assessment
Sustainability Appraisal and Addendum
Updated Portal

Public Consultation on the Draft National Marine Planning Framework for Ireland

In Ireland Ministers Eoghan Murphy and Damien English have published the Draft National Marine Planning Framework (NMPF) for Ireland. The Draft NMPF is Ireland’s first marine planning framework. The Draft Plan is now available for public consultation. Details are available here:

https://www.housing.gov.ie/planning/marine-planning/public-consultation-draft-national-marine-planning-framework

Regional public events are being held to promote awareness and facilitate public and stakeholder participation on the Draft NMPF. Details of the events arranged to date can be found on website listed above.

The conference workshop papers have just been uploaded to our website! Thank you to everyone who participated and contributed some great ideas. You can find the papers in the resources section of the website under documents or by following this link.

Photos from the day have also been uploaded to the photo gallery which you can find here or in the resources section under photo gallery.

Our Biennial Conference is only two weeks away! If you have not yet registered for the event you can do so by following this link.

With this, we would like to wish you all a Happy New Year! We look forward to seeing those attending the conference soon!

Irish Sea Maritime Forum Biennial Conference 2019 Cardiff

If you have any queries please contact: info@irishseamaritimeforum.org

 

Protecting our seas and coastline is vital to ensure a sustainable future for marine stakeholders and sea users. Part of the ISMF’s vision is to ensure we promote “a healthy marine environment” which is why developing a better understanding around the benefits of Marine Protected Areas in so important. To find out more visit our MPA page where you can find information on MPAs in the Irish and Celtic Seas.

MPAs will also be one of the key subjects discussed at our Biennial Conference in January. Don’t forget to register here.

For any further information please contact us at: info@irishseamaritimeforum.org

With our Biennial Conference only a few weeks away at the Pierhead Building in Cardiff, the ISMF team have been making progress on updating the Irish-Sea-Maritime-Forum-Biennial-Conference-2019-Programme and reaching out to relevant projects and partners around the Irish Sea.

For more information on projects around the Irish Sea please follow this link.

Don’t forget to register for the ISMF Biennial Conference via Eventbrite!

For any further information please contact us at: info@irishseamaritimeforum.org

image courtesy of cardiff.ac.uk

 

This week we held our first ISMF Steering Group meeting on the Isle of Man where we were welcomed by the Minister for Enterprise Development Hon. Lawrence Skelly, and linked up with colleagues from the new Irish Sea Centre and the Isle of Man government.  Hosted by the Department of Enterprise, the meeting allowed our steering group members to discuss an array of important topics including our upcoming 2019 ISMF Biennial Conference to be held in the Pierhead Building, Cardiff.

Over the two day meeting, our steering group also had the opportunity to undertake an excursion organised by the Irish Sea Centre to various sites that are of significance to the Irish Sea. Please follow the links below for further information:

• Port Erin Marine Laboratory 
• Department of Enterprise
• Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture (DEFA)
• Manx Wildlife Trust 
• Oceanweb

You can also visit the photo gallery for images from the day.

For any further information on our recent steering group meeting, you can visit our resources section where you will find our new documents section.

Don’t forget to sign up to the next ISMF Biennial Conference which will take place in Cardiff in January 2019. You can register by following this link. For any further information please contact us at: info@irishseamaritimeforum.org