The Marine Management Organisation (MMO), an agency of the UK Government, has commissioned a marine consultant to ‘map’ shipping’s value to help underpin the development of port marine plan policies.
ABPmer said that the charting will help underpin the development of both shipping and port marine plan policies Photo: ABPmer
UK-based ABP Marine Environmental Research (ABPmer) will undertake the project. It said that the mapping will help underpin the development of both shipping and port marine plan policies, as well as how such policies are considered alongside other marine space users.
Additionally, it is anticipated that the mapping methods will give the MMO a means to develop their evidence base.
Results of the project are expected this summer.
Commenting on the venture, ABPmer’s Chris Jackson, head of data services, said: “We will start with a temporally-referenced spatial data-set of shipping activity across a single marine plan area. Next, we will identify, evaluate and source relevant data to determine trade value. We will then combine the results of the value exercise with the spatial data to create maps showing the value of shipping to specific geographic areas.”
Vivid Economics will be delivering economics analysis support to ABPmer as a subconsultant during the venture.
The MMO is responsible for preparing marine plans in England.
Marine plans guide those using and regulating the marine area to encourage sustainable development while considering the environment, economy and society.
Source: PortStrategy