The sea and ocean
provide structure for the areas whose coastlines they border in
Europe.
- They have shaped
the history and identity of european coastal zones,
- Their rich
diversity makes them an immense resource,
- They also
represent a multi-faceted threat: pollution, natural disasters, and all types
of pressure on the coastline. Maritime transport in Europe
Every day,
coastal authorities try to find a way of sustainably exploiting
the potential resulting from the presence of the sea or ocean but they are faced
with two main barriers to success:
- Firstly, the
proliferation of policies and stakeholders impacting upon the
coastline of europe, their lack of coordination and, in some
cases, their contradictory nature. EU maritime policy
- Secondly: the
absence of any maritime planning on a European level. While Canada, Australia
and the USA have introduced maritime strategies to strengthen their positions
in international trade and ensure a higher level of protection for their
coasts, Europe is turning its back on its
seas and oceans.European maritime economy
These two aspects
are linked. Coastal authorities in europe, working mainly
through the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR), have been lobbying
for an integrated European approach for more than a decade. The
Commission s publication of a Green Paper on the European Union s maritime
policy might lay the foundations for new ambitious planning and
coastal agencies of europe intend to be
involved. European green paper of the sea