Northern Ireland Marine Plan

In Northern Ireland the coast and marine area have an important connection with our social, cultural and economic development. The marine environment is a key asset in terms of biodiversity, recreation, tourism and the transportation of goods and services to and from our ports. In addition it also supports industries such as aquaculture and fishing and there is significant potential for the growth of marine renewables in the future.

Marine planning aims to achieve better management of our marine resources in a sustainable way. It will allow us to set clear objectives and priorities for the future development, management, conservation and use of the marine area.

The Marine Policy Statement (MPS) published in March 2011 provides the high-level policy context within which all marine plans in the UK will be developed, implemented, monitored, amended and/or withdrawn.

At a local level, DOE published the Draft Marine Position Paper in March 2012 for consultation. This document complements the MPS, and sets out the Executive’s objectives for the sustainable development of our marine area and the steps being taken to realise these objectives. It identifies the policy context within which marine plans will be developed locally.

The Northern Ireland Marine Plan (NIMP) is a marine plan being prepared under Article 51 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 and equivalent provisions of the Marine Bill (when enacted) by the DOE Marine Plan Team.

During February / March 2012, DOE notified relevant authorities of its intention to commence work on the Northern Ireland Marine Plan. As part of this process, the Marine Plan Team published a ‘Statement of Public Participation’ (SPP) which has subsequently been reviewed and updated in May 2013.  The SPP was developed with the aid of key stakeholder views following a seminar held in March 2012. A Summary Report of Key Stakeholder Event March 2012 ( 205 KB) is available here.