Strategic research on marine spatial planning : a comparative analysis of marine spatial planning policies and implementation in four countries

An increasing number of countries around the world recognize, accept and implement MSP. UNESCO principles are considered the fundamentals for designing and implementing an area based marine spatial plan. If these principles are incorporated into the national policy framework of a country, it is to be expected that the national Marine Spatial Plan, which should ideally be based on this policy framework, also reflects these policy principles.The main objective of this research is to find global MSP principles and investigate the ways of implementation of these principles based on political or economical background. Four case studies were selected: Mexico, the USA, New Zealand and the Netherlands. For each country the strategic marine policy framework was identified and one marine spatial plan was selected to be researched in detail. A literature review of all policy documents and management plans linked to the case studies was conducted. UNESCO MSP principles were followed in all case studies.In economically developed countries, the need for MSP as a planning tool derives from a (anticipated) lack of space. The focus can be1) the need to make sure limited space is used efficient, or 2) a sense of urgency to protect the marine environment. Mexico, the only country in transition in our research, uses MSP as a means to streamline the many existing legislations and policies. While different case study countries seem to define different needs for MSP, this also means that the principle 'Integrated' is interpreted differently in all four case studies.The level of detail/abstraction of a management plan can depend on several factors: size of the area, the main objective of the plan or whether the plan is located in a federal state or a unitary state. This will have effect on the way principles are implemented in a management plan.