The Committee on Transport and Tourism adopted the own-initiative report by Spyros DANELLIS (S&D, EL) on Blue Growth: Enhancing sustainable growth in the EUs marine, maritime transport and tourism sectors in response to the Commissions communication on the same subject.
The report recalls that over 70% of the earth's surface is covered by oceans and seas which can play a crucial role in addressing the long-term challenges facing the EU, such as climate change and global competitiveness.
This report is Parliaments roadmap for the further advancement of blue growth. It seeks to revitalise the Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP).
General framework: the committee welcomes the Commissions communication on Blue Growth which gives a clear indication of the potential of the maritime economy to create smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and generate employment opportunities. In addition, the coastal and maritime policy should be included in the general framework of the 2014-2020 programming period, also with a view to achieving the objectives set out in the Europe 2020 strategy.
The committee reiterates its support for the IMP and stresses that the promotion of this policy remains the primary means for enhancing blue growth. It considers that the Blue Growth Strategy, as part of the Integrated Maritime Policy, will encourage the development of synergies and coordinated policies, thus generating European added value.
Members consider that, in order to boost the competitiveness of the Union's maritime economic sectors in the global market, local, regional, national and European authorities must create the necessary conditions for sustainable growth, namely by establishing :
On funding, the report calls on the Member States to channel available financial instruments and European funding towards blue economy projects. It stresses the importance of taking into account the specific needs of the bailed-out Member States that are facing increased difficulty in undertaking high-cost projects, as well as those of the outermost and island regions, which present structural constraints due to their remoteness and natural characteristics.
Clusters: the committee calls on the EU and the Member States to give strong support to the creation of regional and crossborder maritime clusters. It stresses the strategic importance of such clusters as centres of excellence for economic activity related to blue growth and their ability to promote the sharing of knowledge and good practice, generate synergies between the various sectors of the blue economy, and help to attract investment.
Maritime Spatial Planning and Integrated Coastal Management: the committee welcomes the Commissions legislative proposal for Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) and Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) as measures necessary for managing the increasing number of maritime and coastal activities and protecting the marine environment. It notes that MSP is expected to bring business costs down and improve the investment climate, while ICM will facilitate the coordination of activities in the coastal zone and will bring about an overall improvement in the governance of this zone. A tailored approach is needed, so as to leave the Member States scope, when implementing EU maritime and coastal planning guidelines, for taking account of local specificities and needs in liaison with local authorities.
The report states that the land-sea interface needs to be strengthened in the context of spatial planning in order to safeguard continuity of human activities and of the supply chain and ensure that coastal areas are properly connected with their hinterland. This could help avoid the phenomenon of coasts being treated as borders.
The Commission is urged to help Member States launch plans to map and survey wrecked ships and submerged archaeological sites, which form an important part of the Union's historical and cultural heritage.
Maritime skills and employment: the committee considers that overall employment in the blue economy may exceed the estimated number of 7 million jobs by 2020, if it is supported by training policies aimed at ensuring the presence of a mobile workforce with sufficient skills and experience. It reiterates its call for a significant improvement in working, health and safety conditions in the maritime professions and encourages the Commission and the Member States to step up their efforts in this field in order to improve career security and make jobs in the blue economy and related sectors more attractive.
In this area, the Commission is called upon to:
Research and innovation: Members recall the EUs world-class research capacity in maritime fields.
The Commission is called upon to inter alia:
Maritime and coastal tourism: the report calls on the Member States to support initiatives to develop and upgrade sustainable tourism infrastructure, in particular to promote new forms of tourism, such as eco-agro-fishing and sustainable water sports. The importance of yachting and sailing for maritime tourism is also.
Blue energy: the report notes that climate change is one of the main threats to marine biodiversity worldwide, and that the energy aspects of a blue growth strategy must be based on renewable energies and energy efficiency. The Commission is called upon to adopt an integrated approach to the development of marine energy resources, by exploiting synergies between offshore wind energy and other forms of renewable marine energy.
Fisheries and aquaculture: the report points out that aquaculture in the EU has the potential significantly to improve the economies of coastal communities. It calls on the Commission, in its forthcoming strategic guidelines for aquaculture in the EU, to promote offshore aquaculture, which can be combined with blue energy facilities so as to reduce pressure from over-intensive aquaculture on coastal ecosystems and on other activities. Members acknowledge that protecting Europes maritime borders is a challenge for Member States and consider that a successful blue economy requires secure EU maritime borders, with a view to ensuring the protection of the marine environment, fisheries controls, the fight against illegal fishing and law enforcement. A European coastguard should be set up to coordinate operations and surveillance at sea.
Marine mineral extraction: Members call on the Commission to pay particular attention to the environmental consequences of mining the seabed, especially in highly sensitive marine environments, to support relevant research projects, to apply the precautionary principle, and to cooperate with the authorities of third countries involved in the sector in the attempt to fill existing gaps in scientific knowledge more rapidly.
Blue biotechnology: Members recognise that blue biotechnology has the potential to create high-skilled employment and has much to offer in critical areas such as health, nutrition and innovation. They welcome the Commissions intention to support the research and innovation needed to promote this activity in the field of entrepreneurship.