Economics, security, and ecology have traditionally been treated as separate policy domains, each with its own actors and interests. In the North Sea,1 however, these domains are becoming closely intertwined, driven by the development of large-scale economic activities and associated ofshore infrastructure and set against a dramatically deteriorated international security environment.
As a result, spatial planning decisions in the North Sea increasingly require economic, ecological, and security interests to be considered in concert. This report examines where ecological and security interests may overlap. The analysis shows that better alignment between the security and ecological agendas for the North Sea can yield concrete added value for both sides.
The areas of (potential) cooperation include:
1. The use of sensor networks for data collection and monitoring.
2. The development of layered situational awareness reflecting the status of and dynamics on the North Sea in real time and over time, including pattern recognition, significance, and scenario development.
3. The physical and regulatory restriction of human activity in combined hotspots where the protection of critical infrastructure and ecological recovery potentially coincide.
4. Consistent follow-through – oversight and enforcement, incident response – without which the other forms of cooperation remain non-committal and of limited value.
To explore these potential synergies further, this report proposes a number of pilot projects that can demonstrate the feasibility and added value of joint measures at relatively modest cost. A next step would be to bring together the relevant parties to concretely shape one or more of these pilots, and to subsequently initiate them in practice.
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