sou · GWB348EN · 2009-01-01 00:00:00 — It is proposed that the county administrative boards should have the same geo- graphical boundaries as the regional municipalities but should have more purely central government functions such as inspection, per- mits and other applications of the law. further proposes that responsibility for regional development, together with certain administrative respon- sibility, should be transferred to the regional municipalities. 4.4.2Current spatial planning in the municipalities The present () is the closest we come in to physical planning of our sea areas. The need for increased zone planning in Europe has been highlighted at the EU level by virtue of the adoption in 2002 by Parliament and recommendation on the Planning of Swedish sea areas implementation of ICZM in Europe.1 The problem is the large number of claims that are being laid to the coasts resources and the fact that conflicts arise, or may in future arise, as a result. The Swedish system means that the municipalities have respon- sibility for planning as regards both land and sea, with a duty to ensure coordination, to balance conflicting interests and to cooper- ate with actors who have responsibilities for implementation in accordance with the Planning and Act, the Environmental Code and the environmental quality objectives.2 This gives , at least in theory, the main tools and the division of responsibility that the EU recommendations aim to achieve. However, Swedish municipalities do not currently undertake any special planning measures for the whole of their water area.3 Neither are there any legislative requirements obliging the municipalities to conduct spatial planning in accordance with any special principles. ICZM can be carried out as a strategy for land and water areas in the zone. The territorial sea can also be included. The participants in a management plan for the zone areas nor- mally consist of municipalities and relevant authorities, economic actors, NGOs and the public. Today these strategies do not con- stitute any legally binding programme. The present system means also that the management plans are most frequently limited to environmental problems within the sea area of a municipality. In , there are currently several good examples of initia- tives for zone planning that have been taken by a single municipality or by several municipalities working together. For example, in municipality a plan has been produced in a broad public process. During 2003, a shoreline inventory was implemented which formed the basis for the work with the plan. In the final analysis, the plan was not, however, adopted by the municipal assembly as had been expected. In addi- tion to this more comprehensive type of initiative, several munici- palities have drawn up thorough comprehensive plans for given areas, for example to enable decisions on the siting of wind turbines. Another example of planning efforts in areas is the 1 Recommendation of Parliament and of 2002 concerning the implementation of integrated in Europe (2002/413/EC). 2A system for regional and local coordination and cooperation in areas. Response by the county administrative boards to Government assignment 51/2007. 3A national strategy for the environment. Government communication 2004/05:173. Planning of Swedish sea areas project known as Interreg project Forum that was con- cluded in 2007. This project aimed to create a coherent overall picture of the exploitation of resources in , and . Government regulations on the matter of ICZM do not exist in today. The development of ICZM regulation at the regional or inter-municipal level is, however, at the planning stage in other parts of Europe, for example in the area. A draft of a special strategy for ICZM in the has recently been produced. National strategies are to be coordinated with this strategy. The draft contains provisions regarding factors that have an impact on the areas, cross-border cooperation including environmental impact assessments and institutional coordination. , and Planning has produced a report on proposals for improvements to Swedish zone management.4 maintains that there is a need for a clearer link between planning and management, as well as that strategies may be needed for certain areas. is also of the view that there are serious shortcomings in the present comprehensive planning by municipalities. It is noted that the comprehensive plan is an important instrument for the man- agement of the areas, but that it should be integrated with regional development planning and work on programmes of meas- ures for which the water authorities are responsible. In its report, the Board further points out that intersectoral planning material could provide a basis for better planning and for greater inter- municipal cooperation. At present, work is in progress within production of a planning portal as a tool for making planning material more accessible. The planning portal may in future also include background material for spatial plan- ning. 4 , and Planning (2006) Vad händer med kusten? [What's happening to our coast?] Experiences of municipal and regional planning and of EU projects in Swedish areas. Planning of Swedish sea areas 4.4.3Comprehensive plans as a tool for regional and municipal planning As mentioned above, the comprehensive plan is the central tool for physical planning at the municipal level. Under Chapter 1, Section 3 of the PBA, each municipality must have an up-to-date compre- hensive plan which covers the whole municipality. The comprehen- sive plan must be a guide to decisions on the use of land and water areas, as well as on how the built environment should be developed and protected. It is an important and fundamental principle of planning that the comprehensive plans are non-binding in nature. The regulation of land use and development in a munici- pality is effected through detailed development plans. A detailed development plan, which by contrast is binding, can only apply to a limited part of the municipality. Under Chapter 4, Section 1, the general interests under Chapter 2, which should be taken into account in decisions on the use of land and water areas, are speci- fied in the comprehensive plan. When reporting, national interests under Chapters 3 or 4 of the Environmental Code must be given special mention. The plan should make evident the basic features as regards the intended use of land and water areas, the municipalitys view of how the built-up environment is to be developed and protected; and how the municipality intends to satisfy the stated national inter- ests and to observe the environmental quality standards in force. The county administrative boards review statement must be attached to the comprehensive plan, in accordance with Section 9. If the county administrative board has not approved a given part of the plan, that fact must be made clear. If proposals for comprehen- sive plans or for the amendment of plans are drawn up, the munici- pality must consult with the county administrative board and with the regional planning bodies and the municipalities concerned in the proposal, in accordance with Section 3. Those authorities and associations, together with individuals who otherwise have a sig- nificant interest in the proposal, must be provided an opportunity for consultation. As regards detailed development plans, central government, in contrast to what applies as regards comprehensive plans, has the possibility of statutory review through the county Planning of Swedish sea areas administrative boards, which carry out the review on the basis of certain established criteria. The decision can be appealed to the Government. Under Chapter 7, Section 4, a regional plan can serve as a guide to decisions about comprehensive plans, detailed development plans and area regulations. To the extent that it has importance for the region, the plan can state the basic features of the use of land and water areas, as well as guidelines for the siting of and installations. Under the present wording of Chapter 7, Section 1 of the Planning and Act there is a possibility for joint exami- nation of issues affecting the use of land and water areas that con- cern several municipalities. The Government then has the oppor- tunity to appoint a regional planning body, which for a certain time or until further notice should manage this work (regional plan- ning). This possibility exists insofar as examination and coordina- tion are not effected in some other way. The Government can appoint an existing association of municipalities as the regional planning body. The Government can also decide that the munici- palities concerned should form a special regional planning associa- tion which will be the regional planning body. Act (1985:894) must be applied in regard to a regional planning association of this kind. There are special provisions on regional planning as regards the municipalities in County. Under Section 2, however, no regional planning body may be appointed if there is general opposition to it on the part of the municipalities concerned. Under Chapter 7, Section 3, the regional planning body within the region must monitor regional issues and regularly submit background material on them for use in planning by the municipalities and central government authorities. Under Section 4, the regional plan must serve to guide decisions on com- prehensive plans, detailed development plans and area regulations. 4.4.4Responsibility as regards planning material The county administrative boards currently have responsibility to supply state planning material for municipal planning. Five county administrative boards in addition constitute water authorities. The water authorities are today responsible for matters related to water quality in five Swedish districts and up to one nautical mile outside the baseline. The county administrative boards role regarding Planning of Swedish sea areas work on water quality is to provide a knowledge base and to put forward proposals for quality standards, supervision programmes and programmes of measures for different drainage areas. This work takes place in a dialogue with municipalities, water protection associations and other local water stakeholders. The water authori- ties will have a clear role in spatial planning work arising from their responsibility as regards different types of planning material. The county administrative boards have, at the request of the Government, submitted proposals for how a system of regional and local coordination and cooperation in areas can be designed and implemented within the framework of water dis- tricts.5 The objective of the task was also to bring about a broader participation by the relevant stakeholders in all planning, decision-making and implementation processes that relate to the protection and exploitation of the environ- ment. The county administrative boards have shown interest in being given a developed role in spatial planning within the baseline. Under the proposal, the county administrative boards will strengthen their role and responsibility regarding coordination of the planning material for the sea areas and contribute additional expert knowledge and competence in this context. It also points to strong connections between water management and comprehensive planning. The county administrative boards also propose an inquiry into how the legal standing of comprehensive planning can be strengthened. Further proposals are that the municipalities, with the support of the county administrative boards, should develop planning of the and environment. The proposals by for the of regional municipalities ought to facilitate the development of unified spatial planning since the regional organisation will then be identical throughout the country. If the proposals by ties are introduced, the regional level will even more clearly acquire the political base and legitimacy that is necessary if regional spatial planning is to be strong and effective. 5 Response by the county administrative boards to government assignment 51/2007. Planning of Swedish sea areas must be regarded as suitable to assume responsibility for spatial planning within the territorial sea. They should be relatively few in number and spatial planning could therefore be undertaken within larger-scale but nonetheless manageable units. To take into consideration environmental problems in a larger geo- graphical area, regional planning should also be introduced within the baseline so that the work of the municipalities is coordinated to a greater extent than is the case today. For the moment, however, until consideration of the proposals by is complete, regional planning should be dealt with by the existing regional bodies and their counterparts. , which today has no common model for regional organisation, should work in accor- dance with the model proposed here as regards matters relating to spatial planning. To implement suitable and cost-effective planning work, cooperation and association between units is of great importance. The municipalities must be considered too small to be able to carry out appropriate spatial planning, and for that reason it should be done on a regional basis. The municipali- ties will nevertheless be important partners for consultation and cooperation in the planning. spatial plans should be produced for the entire Swedish sea area. Under the proposal, spatial plans should be bind- ing for the sea areas, that is to say, they should have legal force and be subject to appeal. Along with the measures proposed by the Inquiry, a new chapter on spatial planning probably ought to be introduced into the Planning and Act (PBA). It should define the attribution of responsibility and powers, as well as the appeal procedures and legal instances concerned. A regional arrangement for spatial planning requires the of a new permanent structure. The present regional organisation the PBA are inadequate for the purposes of effective nationwide planning. The new chapter should also state that planning regarding water areas within the baseline and in the territorial sea should be undertaken on a regional basis, with refer- ence to the County Cooperation Bodies Act (2002:34) and the Act on Pilot with Amended Regional Division of Responsibil- ity (1996:1414). In future, the county administrative boards should exercise, in conjunction with , and Planning, supervision of the observance of the princi- ples that are given legal force through the spatial plans. Planning of Swedish sea areas As regards the county administrative boards role in spatial planning, the considers that they should be given responsibility for supplying planning material to the regions. The Inquiry has not adopted a view about the addi- tional resources that the county administrative boards propose in their report. As regards the of binding spatial plans, the Inquirys proposals are in line with those submitted by the county administrative boards. The Inquiry has taken no detailed position on the relationship between water management and the Inquirys proposals on spatial planning. This ques- tion should nevertheless be included in the legislation and imple- mentation inquiry that the proposes. As regards the issue of responsibility, the Inquirys proposals are not in accordance with the proposals submitted by the county administrative boards for systems of regional and local coordina- tion and cooperation in areas. The Inquirys view it is that public participation and legitimacy are very important in the inshore sea areas where the population is directly affected by the priorities adopted in the planning process. Therefore political bod- ies should continue to have a strong influence on these matters through regional bodies with a direct or indirect political super- structure. The regional bodies should cooperate closely with the municipalities and with the county administrative boards. 4.5Zoning as a tool in spatial planning I propose that a zoning system in Swedish sea areas should be introduced as a component in spatial planning. A zoning system entails the division of sea areas into sectors for different degrees of protection and exploitation. Zoning must be the binding component in spatial plans. Zoning should be elaborated by , and Planning in consultation with the Swedish EPA. The latters role should be to ensure that the eco- system approach is satisfactorily applied in the planning. Planning of Swedish sea areas The introduction of zoning in the Swedish sea areas for different types of exploitation and conservation was discussed in the final report by the The Commission considered that a zoning system should be established and that this should be done within the framework of HELCOM. The task is to propose some first steps towards the development of a model for a planning system for the Swedish sea areas that includes zoning. By that is meant the of zones with varying provisions for resource extraction and protection. However, zoning as a component in spatial planning is not at present clearly defined. Different sectors and countries have different views on what zoning entails. follow some examples of the meanings of this concept. These examples and the consequent analysis then lead on to what the Inquiry considers to be an appropriate definition. The application of IMO regulations, regional agreements and national provisions on limitations on , fishing, the erection of installations, etc., all amount in effect to approaches to zoning in most sea areas of the world. These limitations have normally come into being through the application of rules for, or the introduction of, nature reserves and other areas that are protected for environ- mental reasons. Existing zones in Swedish sea areas are, for exam- ple, nature reserves, protected areas for fishing and zones protected from . spatial planning is not synonymous with zoning.7 spatial planning indicates a countrys preferences or priori- ties as regards its sea areas. Zoning is one of several components in spatial planning. Zones can be established in the whole or parts of the sea area but they must have relatively full coverage if it is to be said that zoning applies. Much of current spatial planning is focused on the of protected areas, which thus cannot be considered full-scale zoning. Zoning entails more ambitious targets with spatial planning, even though legis- lation, rules and measures for control should be capable of varia- tion within a system. Havet – tid för en ny strategi [The sea – time for a new strategy] 7Visions for a sea change. Report of the first international workshop on spatial planning (2007) Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission on Man and the Biosphere Programme. Planning of Swedish sea areas Apart from the Great Barrier in there is no fully developed zoning anywhere in the world today. As mentioned above, an initiative has been taken in the area to has develop a system of spatial planning that includes zoning. Work on zoning has also been started in other countries and regions, but only in limited parts of the sea areas. In the UK and , a pilot project on spatial planning was carried out in the Irish Sea during 2002–2004. The zoning applied was nonethe- less aimed only at conservation and protection of the eco- system. In , the issued a plan for integrated management of the Barents Sea and Lofoten during 2006. The plan indicates sensitive areas as well as areas for com- mercial activities, but does not comprise a plan for zoning in its broader meaning. Up till now, no developed zoning has been undertaken in the sea areas of any of the countries in the Baltic. To some extent zoning has been established in as regards the economic zone and the territorial sea, and in as far as the territorial sea is concerned. But it is then a matter of identifying needs for both exploitation and protection, for example to distinguish areas for windpower expansion. The Interreg project Balance contributed examples of how zoning can be planned and introduced in sea areas. However, it was primarily focused on cooperation in the production of planning material, and also supplied a model for spatial planning in which zoning was included as one of a number of components. The model produced by Balance embraces a number of elements on which spatial planning can be based. The initial steps are to formulate visions for the sea area and planning objectives, as well as to catalogue relevant legislation and to define general principles for spatial planning. Next, an introductory assessment is made of the characteristics of the environment, biological diversity, the human impact and socioeconomic factors. Targets are established for the region in question, as regards both conservation and exploitation. At the planning stage, the selection of zones is made, costs are calculated and a management plan is drawn up. Targets for specific zones are formulated subsequently. In the implemen- tation phase, targets are established for the zones and an initiative is taken to set up a programme of monitoring and control. Planning of Swedish sea areas final step, results are disseminated, which includes the development of indicators and the circulation of reports. In the Balance project, a proposal was also prepared for the of four different zones in the Baltic Sea. However, use of the Balance model requires it to be comple- mented with a realistic plan for prior political preparation of any introduction of zoning. The Australian example below illustrates the importance of political bodies leading the zoning process. Zoning in the Australian Great Barrier reserve The Great Barrier in is the only sea area in the world where zoning is applied to its fullest extent. The process of divid- ing it into zones began in 1975 and the Great Barrier was formed to manage it.8 The Federal and Regional Govern- ment had by then reached agreement on the introduction of an integrated management approach for the sea area. At the outset, wide zones that could be changed were applied. The first zoning plan was adopted six years later and was taken fully into use after a further seven years. The purpose of the zoning is to conserve natu- ral resources by means of regulated use and by regulating activities, creating reserves and designating research areas. During the fol- lowing 15 years a number of instruments were introduced to opti- mise zoning. Maps, permits, education and management plans have been developed. In broad outline, zoning has been based on the concept of a multiple-use area, which entails putting a high protec- tion value on certain areas, while accepting a reasonable degree of exploitation in others. For example, 33 percent of the sea area has been designated as zones where no fishing is permitted, as com- pared to 5 percent previously. The process of introducing spatial planning including zoning in the Great Barrier has by no means followed a straight course and much time has elapsed between proposals, deci- sions and action.9 The view held is that it was the presentation of consolidated data from the area that led to a political breakthrough on the matter. A map of ecological regions had been drawn up, outlining examples of the distribution and viability of each species. 8Day (2002) Zoning – lessons from the Great Barrier in , 45. Planning of Swedish sea areas This led to the involvement of the general public in the issue and pressure was created on the politicians to solve the environment problems. The proposed restrictions nevertheless created problems at the political level in finding ways to deal with various special interests. As a structural adaptation measure, Parliament decided to provide certain financial compensation to those stakeholders who could show that they would be negatively affected by the system proposed.