D4.2 - Report on the barriers to adopting novel and dynamic approaches to Marine Protected Areas designation and implementation

One of today’s most pressing challenges is to safeguard the loss of ecosystem biodiversityand functioning, while simultaneously allowing for their exploitation by those who depend ontheir services, goods and benefits. In Europe, Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) is the maingovernance process to ideally integrate sustainability and exploitation. This requires tools andknowledge to align MSP and Marine Protected Area (MPA) designation processes. However,the degree to which these management approaches have been successfully aligned andintegrated is debatable. Similarly, the ability of European governance regimes to adapt theirutilisation of MSP and MPA processes in the wake of institutional and environmental changeis uncertain. Whilst Deliverable 4.1 presented an institutional and policy audit of each PlanningSite, the purpose of this report, Deliverable 4.2 (D4.2), is to demonstrate the adaptive capacityof governance regimes. This is achieved by assessing how change and learning occur acrossgovernance processes. D4.2 then concludes by considering what these findings reveal aboutthe factors that enable and prevent adaptive capacity. This Deliverable will provide vitalinformation to guide how MarinePlan co-develops with stakeholders a Decision SupportSystem (DSS) for Ecosystem-Based Maritime Spatial Planning (EB-MSP). Additionally, D4.2will combine with Work Package 4’s final task, Task 4.3, to inform the development of bestpractice guidance regarding the enhancement of the effectiveness of spatial conservation andrestoration measures for marine biodiversity in European Seas.