Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 November 2023
252. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on the process of developing and agreeing Designated Marine Area Plans, including the breakdown of areas to be mapped, timeline for publication of draft maps, process for agreeing maps and details of the extent of public consultation in this process. [49539/23]
View answerThe Maritime Area Planning (MAP) Act 2021 (Sections 20-29) provides for Designated Maritime Area Plans or DMAPs. These are forward-looking sub-national plans that contribute to the overall vision for marine spatial planning in the Irish maritime area.
DMAPs are intended to be flexible forward planning tools that can be used for geographic based plans or sectoral-based plans that focus on the sustainable development of marine activities and provide innovative solutions for managing the maritime area.
In order to prepare a DMAP, a public body (a Minister of the Government, a local authority, or a body other than a company established by or under an enactment) must first be designated as a competent authority in accordance with Section 20 of the MAP Act 2021.
The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications is the only public body to date to have been designated as a Competent Authority. This designation on the 5th of July 2023 was for the purposes of preparing and publishing a Designated Maritime Area Plan (DMAP) or Designated Maritime Area Plans (DMAPs) in respect of offshore renewable energy (ORE) for the Irish maritime area. Details of the designation are provided here:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/ef340-designation-of-minister-for-environment-climate-and-communications-as-competent-authority-ref-ddes-23-001/.
Since designation, the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications has submitted a proposal for a South Coast ORE DMAP which I have approved and the designated Minister is now in the process of preparing a draft DMAP.
The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications provided a geographical area in the South Coast ORE DMAP proposal which extended from the High Water Mark on Ireland’s south coast to the 80 metre depth contour and/or the edge of the Irish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
The DMAP process includes a statutory requirement to provide opportunities for comprehensive engagement with interested citizens and local communities. The publication of any DMAP Proposal must be accompanied by a Public Participation Statement (PPS) outlining opportunities for the involvement of interested persons in the DMAP process.
The Public Participation Statement on the South Coast DMAP was published by the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications in July 2023 and includes details of public engagement periods, events and engagement with stakeholder bodies.
The South Coast ORE DMAP proposal and Public Participation Statement are available at this location:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/36d9a-designated-maritime-area-plan-dmap-proposal-for-offshore-renewable-energy/.
As per the MAP Act Section 23(6), a copy of this public participation statement was laid before the Oireachtas on 17 July 2023.
Following a period of engagement and consideration of relevant responses in line with the public participation statement, the next step in the process will be for the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to prepare a draft DMAP and submit it to me for review. Under Section 24 of the MAP Act, I will review the Draft DMAP for consistency between the draft DMAP and:
• The MSP Directive;
• The Marine Planning Policy Statement;
• The National Marine Planning Framework;
• Any relevant guidelines or directives.
Further amendments (and additional environmental assessment of amendments) may be required arising from this review.
Following progression from this stage, the DMAP will need to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas together with Environmental Statements and Appropriate Assessment determinations and will require a resolution to approve it.
There is no statutory time period provided under Section 24 for how long it will take me to review the draft DMAP or for the Houses of the Oireachtas to adopt a resolution.
Once a DMAP has been prepared it will be required to be reviewed within 6 years.
I am currently working on a set of Ministerial Guidelines to add further detail to the DMAP process and these guidelines will be subject to environmental assessment and public consultation once a draft has been prepared to share.
