History of Marine Planning in the Clyde

History of Marine Planning in the Clyde

The Scottish Sustainable Marine Environment Initiative (SSMEI) established four pilot projects, including one in the Clyde, each looking at different aspects of marine planning. The voluntary Firth of Clyde Marine Spatial Plan (2010) was developed as part of the SSMEI programme between 2006 and 2010 with the emphasis on consultation with stakeholders at all stages. When published the document represented an innovative approach to marine planning, based on Scottish Ministers’ commitment to making marine management more efficient, inclusive and accessible.

The Firth of Clyde Marine Spatial Plan (2010) area encompassed the marine and tidal extents of the Firth of Clyde including the River Clyde Estuary, the Inner Firth and associated sea lochs and the Outer Firth. However the new Clyde Marine Region is slightly larger (the boundary was adjusted with the Scottish Marine Regions order to include all rivers in the area up to their Normal Tidal Limit) with boundaries extending to 12nm out to sea and inland to include an area of the Clyde River in South Lanarkshire.

The Plan produced a list of recommended actions and projects, some of which were implemented in the intervening period either by the Firth of Clyde Forum, by partners or through other work streams such as the Marine Protected Area (MPA) selection process. Click the links to find out more information on projects including the Landscape/Seascape Assessment, the audit of recreational access points and the Sea Level Rise project.

Building on this body of work, on 10th February 2016 Core Group members of the Firth of Clyde Forum met to sign the constitution of the Clyde Marine Planning Partnership, marking the establishment of this body.

Key Documents

Supporting documents

From Firth of Clyde Forum to Clyde Marine Planning Partnership

The Core Group of the Firth of Clyde Forum was considered a good basis on which to form the membership of a new Partnership to carry forward development of the Regional Marine Plan. However, in its existing format the FoCF was not suitable for delegation of powers from Scottish Ministers. It needed an agreed constitution before this could be achieved.

Following consideration by Firth of Clyde Forum members and Marine Scotland, on the 10th of February 2016 the Firth of Clyde Forum members met for the final core group meeting and the constitution of the new Clyde Marine Planning Partnership was signed. This brought the work of the Forum to a close and the new, formally constituted Clyde Marine Planning Partnership (CMPP) was established.

In March 2017, the Scottish Minister delegated authority for developing the Regional Marine Plan for the Clyde Marine Region to the CMPP through a Ministerial Direction.

Over the next few years the Clyde Marine Planning Partnership, working with stakeholders and local communities, will develop a Regional Marine Plan for the Clyde Marine Region. The organisation has a strong commitment to inclusive, open and transparent planning, and membership for the CMPP is open. More details on CMPP Membership is available here. There are also other ways to become engaged with marine planning in the Clyde, please sign up to the newsletter for regular updates (at the top of this page) and take a look at the consultation and events page to see what is planned in your area and how you can input into plan development through consultations, events, surveys and workshops.

Firth of Clyde Forum Archive