Coastal and marine spatial planning in Europe. Case studies for Greece and Bulgaria

Abstract

Coastal and maritime areas have significant natural resources and are of great financial significance. However, the intense and reckless exploitation of natural resources has led to a degradation of the marine environment. This degradation has led countries worldwide to take into account International Agreements and Actions on the protection, conservation and sustainable management of the marine environment. One of the above Actions is the development of spatial planning in the coastal environment and the wider marine area.Initially, this survey refers to the importance of the coastal area and the marine environment and the policies that have been developed at International and European level for its protection. Furthermore, it focuses on efforts of coastal states to develop spatial plans for the determination of land uses and the development of human activities in the coastal area and in the wider marine area. As case studies the coastal countries of Greece and Bulgaria have been selected. These countries belong to different maritime areas (The Mediterranean Sea and The Black Sea).The survey shows that spatial planning, though necessary for land use and the marine environment, is complicated. This happens due to many stakeholders with different competencies and financial interests being involved and due to the particularities of each area. Finally, conclusions are drawn for better management and protection of coastal and wider marine space through spatial planning.