Regional Marine Plan for the Orkney Islands: Statement of Public Participation

Version 1: June 2024

IMAGE: Cover illustration from a public engagement workshop about Orkney regional marine planning. Legible text includes: “BUILDING A STRATEGY THAT EMPOWERS THE LOCAL KNOWLEDGE”; “NEED FOR COLLABORATION”; “WORKING WITH SCHOOLS”; “EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES”; “COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT”; “TRILLION”; “CONFLICTING VIEWPOINTS”; “ECONOMIC VALUE”; “HOW DO WE VALUE OUR MARINE ENVIRONMENT”; “WE CARE”; “BRINGING OUT THE ISSUES”; “VALUE BIODIVERSITY”; “I VALUE BIODIVERSITY”; “OPPORTUNITY TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT”; “DUE REGARD TO EXISTING USERS”; and “ORKNEY REGIONAL MARINE PLANNING”. The illustration represents marine uses, environmental concerns, community involvement and competing interests in the preparation of the Regional Marine Plan.

Feedback and Contact details

Comments, questions and queries relating to this Statement of Public Participation on the development of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan can be directed to the marine spatial planning team at Orkney Islands Council, by email: marine.planning@orkney.gov.uk or in writing: Marine Planning, OIC, School Place, Kirkwall KW15 1NY.

Cover picture: Visual Minute captured during public engagement workshop in Kirkwall Sept 2019 © MoreThanMinutes

IMAGE: Map of the Orkney Marine Region. It shows the 12 nautical mile marine region around the Orkney Islands, adjoining marine regions to the west and north, and the location of the islands, ports and harbours. The map states: area of Orkney Marine Region, 9,258 km²; number of islands, 68+; population of Orkney, 22,190; number of ports and harbours, 30; total length of coastline at Mean High Water Springs (MHWS), >1,024 km; area of marine waters within 3 nautical miles, 3,030 km²; area of marine waters within 6 nautical miles, 4,925 km²; area of marine waters within 12 nautical miles, 9,258 km²; and area of Orkney Islands (land), 990 km².

Executive Summary: March 2024

Development and Indicative Participation Timetable

This document is called the Statement of Public Participation. It outlines the key stages involved in producing a statutory Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and how stakeholders and the wider public can engage with the process. It will be updated and revised as the plan-making process evolves or as required; this is the first edition. This document and its revisions will be available through the Orkney Islands Council website; any comments are welcome; the contact details are above.

The production of a regional marine plan for the Orkney Islands marine region will go through various stages prior to publication; an indicative timetable is set out below.

• Stage 1: Preparation, approval and publication of the initial Statement of Public Participation (this document); establishing governance arrangements for the Advisory Group, which will support Orkney Islands Council as the Delegate in preparation of the Plan; initial meeting of the Advisory Group: Nov 2019 – May 2021.

• Stage 2: Preparation of draft Plan and supporting documents, e.g. Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), Habitats Regulation Assessment: Feb 2021 – Oct 2022. All drafts to OIC committees for endorsement Nov 2022 – Dec 2022.

• Stage 3: Draft Plan reviewed by the Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate and approval of the draft Plan by Scottish Ministers for public consultation: Dec 2022 – July 2024.

• Stage 4: Publication of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and 12 week consultation on the Plan and supporting documents including: Strategic Environmental Assessment, partial Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment, Equality Impact Assessment, Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment and Island Communities Impact Assessment: expected August 2024 – November 2024.

• Stage 5: Review of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and supporting information in response to comments made during consultation (Winter 2024/Spring 2025); all drafts to OIC committees for endorsement Summer 2025; submission to Scottish Ministers for approval Summer/Autumn 2025.

• Stage 6: Consideration by Scottish Ministers followed by adoption and publication of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan with supporting information: Autumn 2025. Final plan published Autumn/Winter 2025, along with a statement of modifications. Post adoption SEA statement Winter 2025.

• Stage 7: If an independent investigation is required, evidence gathering and report Winter/Spring 2025; settling of text Spring 2026; submission to Scottish Ministers for approval and publishing Summer 2026. Ongoing review, monitoring and reporting on plan implementation and amendment of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan as required.

Contents

• Executive summary — iii
• Contents — iv
• Introduction — 1
• The need for policy alignment and integration with wider plans and strategies — 4
• Planning policy hierarchy — 5
• Statement of Public Participation: Participation Commitment — 7
• Development and Participation Indicative Timetable — 8
• Stage 1: Preparation, approval and publication of the initial Statement of Public Participation — 10
• Stage 2: Preparation of draft Plan and supporting documents — 11
• Stage 3: Draft Plan reviewed by the Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate and approval of the draft Plan by Scottish Ministers for public consultation — 12
• Stage 4: Publication of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and 12 week consultation — 12
• Stage 5: Review of the draft Plan — 14
• Stage 6: Consideration by Scottish Ministers followed by adoption and publication of the Plan — 14
• Stage 7: Review, monitoring and reporting on Plan implementation — 15
• Appendix 1: Summary of Orkney’s marine spatial planning activities 2009 - date — 16
• Appendix 2: Advisory Group members — 17
• Appendix 3: Acronyms and Abbreviations — 18
• Table 2: Simplified schematic of indicative timeline — 19

Introduction

This document is called the Statement of Public Participation. It outlines the key stages involved in producing a statutory Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan (OIRMP), an indicative timetable and how stakeholders and the wider public can engage with the process.

This Statement of Public Participation will be updated and revised as the plan-making process evolves or as required; this is the first edition. This document and any revisions will be available through the Orkney Islands Council (OIC) website. Any comments on the proposed Statement of Public Participation are welcome; the contact details are included at the beginning of this document.

Background

The Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 provides for the preparation and adoption of both a national marine plan and regional marine plans. Together these plans introduce a statutory marine planning system that will enable a more strategic approach to managing the Scottish marine resource. The policy framework within the plans seeks to balance environmental quality upon which socio-economic needs and demands rely, inform the decision-making process, manage potential conflict scenarios and support sustainable development in the seas around Scotland.

Scottish Ministers adopted and published the National Marine Plan (NMP) in March 2015. Marine Scotland reviewed the NMP in March 2021[^1] and will consider whether changes might be necessary to the plan to deliver the Blue Economy approach, among other matters. In September 2022, Scottish Ministers announced their intention to update the National Marine Plan (2015) by Summer 2025.[^2]

Preparation for Regional Marine Planning began in late 2010 with a consultation on how to define the boundaries for marine regions and how many regions there should be across Scotland. Eleven regions were identified based on physical and administrative characteristics and these were provided for in the Scottish Marine Regions Order 2015, with Orkney Islands being one of the eleven Scottish Marine Regions.

Through its involvement with the Pilot Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan[^3] (PFOW MSP), Orkney has been involved in innovating ways forward in the evolving marine spatial planning processes. The PFOW project was initiated by Marine Scotland in c. 2008; in 2012, OIC, along with the Highland Council, got involved with helping to prepare the pilot plan. Thus, a core team of three people from these three organisations identified the key process required to prepare a regional marine plan, with the added flexibility of being a pilot project, i.e. a non-statutory plan. It covered two Scottish marine regions: Orkney Islands and the North Coast (Mainland Scotland).

[^1]: National Marine Plan Review 2021 | Marine Scotland Information

[^2]: Scotland’s National Marine Plan 2

[^3]: Pilot Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan

The pilot plan-making process also identified many key stakeholders who were subsequently contacted to check if they wanted to be involved in this current statutory phase of marine planning for Orkney. This ensures a wide range of stakeholders are involved from the very earliest stages of the plan-making process, through the provision of updates on progress, prior, during and post delegation of the marine planning functions to OIC (see below). Further details on background work are provided in Appendix 1.

Orkney Marine Planning Partnership / Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan

The Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 introduced provisions for stakeholders to prepare statutory regional marine plans at the local level. A regional marine plan contains statutory local policies and spatial information to guide marine consenting and management decisions. These plans are prepared by Marine Planning Partnerships (MPPs) representing the economic, community, environmental and recreational interests within a local marine region (to 12 nautical miles) (see Figure 1).

MPPs are established to enable local ownership of marine planning policy development taking account of local circumstances. The Orkney Marine Planning Partnership will develop a locally appropriate marine policy framework empowering the local community to deliver sustainable development, realise economic opportunities and protect, and where appropriate, enhance, the local marine environment.

A Ministerial Direction delegating regional marine planning functions to OIC commenced on 27 November 2020. The Council will carry out the delegated functions preparing the statutory OIRMP on behalf of Scottish Ministers.

MPPs consist of delegate organisations, or persons, and advisory organisations, or persons. OIC is the delegate and is legally responsible for delivering regional marine planning functions. Advisors have a formal role within an Advisory Group to help steer and inform the preparation of the regional marine plan. The delegate and the Advisory Group will collectively be known as the Orkney Marine Planning Partnership (OMPP).

IMAGE: Map showing the Orkney Marine Region and adjoining marine regions. It marks the Orkney Islands and surrounding zones extending to 3, 6 and 12 nautical miles, with adjoining regions labelled North Coast and Shetland Isles.

Preparation of the Orkney Islands Marine Region: State of the Environment Assessment

The Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 requires that an assessment be made of the condition of the environment within any Scottish marine region where a regional marine plan is being prepared. As well as describing the condition of the environment, the State of the Environment Assessment also has to summarise the significant pressures and impact of human activity on the area.

OIC prepared the Orkney Islands Marine Region: State of the Environment Assessment (SoEA) during 2018-2020, as the main output of the Orkney Marine Environment Project. Key stakeholders were contacted and asked to provide any data they could share to inform this baseline assessment process. This was done via face to face meetings, email and during public workshops, as outlined below. Most of these stakeholders had been consulted during the earliest stages of trying to secure delegate partners and were involved in the PFOW process discussed above, and therefore had a reasonable understanding of marine planning process and data requirements.

Although there was no obligation to do so, the draft SoEA for Orkney was subject to various public consultation events to allow the wider island communities to be included from the outset. This included workshops with Visual Minutes (see Figure 2) and presentations, as well as questionnaires, followed by a consultation on the draft SoEA.

The SoEA was subject to an independent review by International Centre for Island Technology, Heriot Watt University, based in Stromness. Key research staff provided feedback throughout the process and assessed the methodology used. The SoEA was finalised and published in January 2021 and can be viewed on the OIC website.[^4]

[^4]: Orkney Islands Marine Region: State of the Environment Assessment

IMAGE: Visual Minute captured during a public engagement workshop in Stromness in September 2019. The graphic is titled “ORKNEY MARINE ENVIRONMENT PROJECT — OMEP” and contains legible phrases including “COASTLINE = 1,024 km”, “ORKNEY MARINE REGION AREA = 9,258 km²”, “LAND & SEA ARE INTRINSICALLY TOGETHER”, “ECONOMIC VALUE”, “MAKING CONNECTIONS”, “COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT”, “DIFFERENT PEOPLE DIFFERENT VIEWPOINTS”, “BIODIVERSITY VALUE”, “MARINE ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH”, “MARINE RENEWABLE ENERGY”, “CLIMATE CHANGE”, “MARINE TOURISM”, “MARINE LITTER”, “VALUE AESTHETICS”, “LOCAL”, “NATIONAL”, and “EUROPEAN UNION”. It records workshop views about the marine environment, economic value, biodiversity, climate change, marine uses and community engagement.

Delegated marine planning functions

As the first step in the process of statutory regional marine planning, Orkney Islands Council received a Direction from Scottish Ministers on 27th November 2020, delegating the functions in relation to producing a Regional Marine Plan for the Orkney Islands.[^5] The Direction identifies the Delegate legally responsible for developing the Regional Marine Plan and outlines the matters to be considered relevant to the Plan. The Direction also considers the timescales within which certain actions have to be completed, including submission to Scottish Ministers for their approval, a Regional Marine Plan, together with various supporting information. The Orkney Islands Delegate is Orkney Islands Council.

As the adjacent planning authorities, notification of the intention to prepare a regional marine plan for Orkney was sent to Shetland Islands Council, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar and The Highland Council, in February 2021.

[^5]: Delegation of functions: Regional Marine Plan for the Scottish Marine Region for the Orkney Islands—Direction 2020

The need for policy alignment and integration with wider plans and strategies

Most development and use which takes place in the marine environment has an onshore component or implication. This could be, for example, a harbour development with an access road, laydown area and facilities on the coast, a pier across the intertidal zone and navigational approaches within adjacent marine waters. For developments such as these, a consistent policy for port and harbour development needs to be adopted in the relevant regional marine plan and land-based development plan.

There are planning policies that aim to protect environmental assets that have marine, intertidal and land-based components such as designated nature conservation sites, protected species, historic environment assets and landscape/seascape features or characteristics. Marine and land use planning policies that aim to protect and manage these assets need to be consistent in their requirements and effectively integrated to ensure that the desired outcomes are achieved. This consistency and integration will help to protect the environment and streamline the assessment of development and decision-making processes.

As the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan extends from Mean High Water Springs to 12 nautical miles, and land-use planning extends to Mean Low Water Springs,[^6] this overlap in the intertidal zone helps ensure an integrated approach.

[^6]: Relationship between the statutory land use planning system and the marine planning system

Planning policy hierarchy

Marine and land use planning policy in Scotland is delivered through a hierarchy of national, regional and local plans and strategies. Plans and strategies developed at the local level are required to conform with or have regard to plans at the national and regional level, as outlined below. Thus, the OIRMP is required to conform with the UK Marine Policy Statement and Scotland’s National Marine Plan and any subsequent amendments (see Figure 3).

Under the reformed planning system in Scotland, National Planning Framework will, for the first time, incorporate Scottish Planning Policy and will take on enhanced status as part of the statutory development plan. Therefore, National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) and the next Orkney Local Development Plan will form the statutory development plan for Orkney. NPF4 will contain national policies for a wide range of development and planning issues that will provide the planning policy framework at the local level. It is therefore critical that NPF4 is adopted prior to the publication of the draft OIRMP in order that NPF4 policies can inform the OIRMP.

Following the publication of NPF4, an Orkney Regional Spatial Strategy (ORSS) will be prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019. This strategy will identify the priorities for, and location of, key strategic developments in Orkney. It is envisaged that the ORSS will set the strategic framework for development across the land and marine areas of Orkney. The strategy will inform the preparation of the future Orkney Local Development Plan and OIRMP to help deliver the identified outcomes in a joined-up way.

Due to the statutory requirements for conformity between the various plans and strategies, and the practical need for consistency and integration to support better decision making, the timing of the preparation of the various plans need to be appropriately aligned.

IMAGE: Diagram showing the relationship between plans and strategies. The UK Marine Policy Statement leads to Scotland’s National Marine Plan. Scotland’s National Marine Plan and the National Planning Framework lead to the Orkney Regional Spatial Strategy. The Orkney Regional Spatial Strategy relates to the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and the Orkney Local Development Plan, which also relate to each other.

UK Marine Policy Statement and Scotland’s National Marine Plan

The UK Marine Policy Statement was adopted in 2011 and sets the framework for preparing Marine Plans and taking decisions affecting the marine environment.

Following on from that, Scotland’s National Marine Plan (NMP) was adopted in 2015 and provides a comprehensive overarching framework for all marine activity in both Scottish inshore waters (out to 12 nautical miles) and offshore waters (12 to 200 nautical miles). The NMP sets out guidance specifically for regional planners to inform the development of regional marine plans.

National Planning Framework 4

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) provides a long-term spatial plan for Scotland that sets out where development and infrastructure is needed to support sustainable and inclusive growth. It guides spatial development, set out national policies, designate national developments and reflect regional spatial priorities. NPF4 was adopted in 2023.

Orkney’s Regional Spatial Strategy

Following the publication of NPF4 and the adoption of statutory guidance by the Scottish Government, an Orkney’s Regional Spatial Strategy (ORSS) will be prepared. The ORSS will identify the strategic priorities for development planning in Orkney over the next 25 years and beyond to 2050. The key strategic developments necessary to deliver these priorities will be identified alongside the outcomes to which they will contribute. The Regional Spatial Strategy will not be part of the “development plan”; however, the preparation of the National Planning Framework and Local Development Plans is to “have regard to” an adopted Regional Spatial Strategy.

Statement of Public Participation: Participation Commitment

This Statement of Public Participation outlines the transparent and inclusive process that will be used to develop the OIRMP, making best use of local knowledge and expertise, along with national data sources and professional input.

In developing the OIRMP for the Orkney Islands, the Delegate is committed to:

• involving all relevant stakeholders and members of the public throughout the process;
• ensuring arrangements for participation are inclusive, clear and transparent;
• providing clear communication through a range of formats;
• giving full consideration to all representations.

Effective engagement in the development of the OIRMP at each stage is essential. This will ensure the OIRMP benefits not only those with a sectoral interest in Orkney’s marine resources, but also those who live in or visit the region. As such, the process will involve a wide range of stakeholders including, but not limited to, members of the public, key agencies, conservation bodies, fishing and aquaculture representatives, shipping, ports and harbours, energy interests, recreation and tourism interests and the voluntary sector.

Stakeholder involvement and feedback as the OIRMP progresses is paramount to its success. All comments, views and representations made at the various stages will be taken on board, although the outcome might not result in all alterations suggested. A modifications report will be produced outlining the comments and changes made following the public consultation on the draft plan and associated documents. Given that the marine planning system must integrate future needs and different views, as well as operate with legal constraints and national policy, some compromise will be required. Details of how and when stakeholders can contribute are given at Stage 4, Table 1 below.

To help ensure effective consultation, a separate ‘Principles of Engagement’ document is also being prepared. Whilst principally an operational document for the Delegate, it will also provide guidance for stakeholders to ensure best practice techniques are used. These principles include the need for adaptability and flexibility.

Development and Participation Indicative Timetable

The process to produce a regional marine plan for the Orkney Islands marine region will go through a number of stages prior to publication (see Figure 4). An indicative timetable is set out below and this Statement of Public Participation will be updated and revised as the OIRMP progresses. It will give details on future events and this Statement of Public Participation and its revisions will be available through the OIC website. Any comments on the Statement of Public Participation are welcome; contact details are included at the beginning of this document.

IMAGE: Circular diagram titled “The Orkney Islands Regional Marine Planning Process Diagram”. It shows stakeholder engagement at the centre, with the activities “Gathering Data” and “Addressing Data Gaps”. Surrounding stages include “1. Statement of Public Participation”, “2. Plan Preparation”, “3. Regional Marine Plan (Draft)”, “4. Consultation & Engagement”, “5. Consultation Analysis & Modifications”, “6. Adopt the Regional Marine Plan”, and “7. Implement the Plan”, followed by “Monitor And Evaluation”. Environmental and socio-economic assessments surround the process.

The summary of the seven stages that will be undertaken to prepare the marine plan provided below is followed by further detail on each stage. All timescales are indicative and subject to revision as required. Any subsequent updates will be approved by Scottish Ministers prior to publication.

• Stage 1: Preparation, approval and publication of the initial Statement of Public Participation (this document); establishing governance arrangements for the Advisory Group, which will support Orkney Islands Council as the Delegate in preparation of the Plan; initial meeting of the Advisory Group: Nov 2019 – May 2021.

• Stage 2: Preparation of draft Plan and supporting documents (e.g. Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), Habitats Regulation Assessment): Feb 2021 – Oct 2022. All drafts to OIC committees for endorsement Nov 2022 – Dec 2022.

• Stage 3: Draft Plan reviewed by the Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate and approval of the draft Plan by Scottish Ministers for public consultation: Dec 2022 – July 2024.

• Stage 4: Publication of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and 12 week consultation on the Plan and associated supporting documents including: Strategic Environmental Assessment, partial Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment, Equality Impact Assessment, Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment and Island Communities Impact Assessment: expected August 2024 – November 2024.

• Stage 5: Review of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and supporting information in response to comments made during consultation (Winter 2024/Spring 2025); all drafts to OIC committees for endorsement Summer 2025; submission to Scottish Ministers for approval Summer/Autumn 2025.

• Stage 6: Consideration by Scottish Ministers followed by adoption and publication of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan with supporting information: Autumn 2025. Final plan published Autumn/Winter 2025, along with a statement of modifications. Post adoption SEA statement Winter 2025.

• Stage 7: If an independent investigation is required, evidence gathering and report Winter 2025/Spring 2026; settling of text Spring 2026; submission to Scottish Ministers for approval and publishing Summer 2026. Ongoing review, monitoring and reporting on plan implementation and amendment of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan as required.

Stage 1: Preparation, approval and publication of the initial Statement of Public Participation

This document; establishing governance arrangements for the Advisory Group, which will support Orkney Islands Council as the Delegate in preparation of the Plan; initial meeting of the Advisory Group: Nov 2019 – May 2021.

Statement of Public Participation

Endorsement of the draft Statement of Public Participation was provided by the OIC Development and Infrastructure Committee in March 2021 and ratification at the General Meeting of the Council in May 2021. Including input from the Advisory Group, the draft Statement of Public Participation was submitted to Marine Scotland in May 2021 for approval by Scottish Ministers, in accordance with agreed timescales. This Statement of Public Participation has been approved for publication by Scottish Ministers, after minor revision following comments from Marine Scotland.

Advisory Group

The Orkney Marine Planning Advisory Group will provide technical advice and guidance on physical, environmental, social, cultural and economic issues to inform the preparation of a regional marine plan for Orkney. The Advisory Group will play an important role to ensure that marine planning is informed by a broad range of expertise and interests; see Appendix 2 for the list of member organisations.

Between 2016 – 2020, OIC carried out significant engagement with the economic, community, environmental and recreational interests in Orkney regarding participation in regional marine planning. This included investigating potential Delegate and Advisory Group roles. Following receipt of the Direction from Scottish Ministers on 27 November 2020, OIC re-contacted key stakeholders previously involved with engagement activities. In addition, anyone who had subsequently shown an interest in the development of marine planning in Orkney during the Orkney Marine Environment Project were also contacted. Following due process, the Advisory Group was set up.

At the initial meetings of the Advisory Group, papers will be discussed regarding:

• outline of the roles and responsibilities of the Delegate and the Advisory Group.
• draft formal Terms of Reference to determine governance arrangements and define a clear relationship between the Delegate and the Advisory Group.
• this draft Statement of Public Participation.
• outline of the scope and objectives of the marine plan.

Stage 2: Preparation of draft Plan and supporting documents

E.g. Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), Habitats Regulation Assessment: Feb 2021 – Oct 2022. All drafts to OIC committees for endorsement Nov 2022 – Dec 2022.

The Plan will be scoped to determine the matters to be included in the proposed regional marine plan, using input from the Advisory Group and invited representations from wider stakeholders. The outline draft Plan will be prepared. It will be revised in light of comments received and a draft Plan will be developed. Further dialogue will then be undertaken with the Advisory Group and other stakeholders and policy options will be refined in line with the Strategic Environmental Assessment and other assessments, as outlined below. Once endorsed by the OIC committee process (Development and Infrastructure Committee), the draft Plan will then be submitted to Scottish Ministers for their agreement to its publication for consultation.

The development of the Plan is subject to a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). In Scotland, public bodies are required to assess, consult on and monitor the likely impacts their plans, programmes and strategies will have on the environment. This process is known as SEA. An SEA scoping report will be published by OIC after the scope of the draft OIRMP has been defined and discussed with the Advisory Group. The SEA scoping report will be subject to a five-week consultation period with the consultation authorities (i.e. Scottish Environment Protection Agency, SNH (NatureScot) and Historic Environment Scotland) via the SEA gateway. Following the scoping phase, an SEA environmental report will be prepared alongside the draft Plan.

A draft Habitat Regulations Appraisal (HRA) report will also be published for consultation alongside the SEA report. Under the Habitats Regulations, all competent authorities must consider whether any plan or project will have a ‘likely significant effect’ on a European site. If so, they must carry out an ‘appropriate assessment’ (AA). This is known as Habitats Regulations Appraisal (HRA). Natura 2000 is the Europe-wide network of protected sites developed under the European Commission's Habitats Directive (Directive 92/43/EEC) and Birds Directive (79/409/EEC).

During the development of the draft Plan, the process of developing a partial Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA) will be initiated to inform and assess the impact of the regional marine plan policies. A BRIA is used to analyse the cost and benefits to businesses and the third sector of any proposed legislation or regulation, with the goal of using evidence to identify the proposal that best achieves policy objectives, while minimising costs and burdens as much as possible.

The partial BRIA will be published for consultation at the same time as the SEA. The purpose of an Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) is to ensure the law is complied with, taking account of equality, human rights and socioeconomic disadvantage (poverty) implications when making decisions. It also ensures decision makers are fully informed at a formative stage in the decision-making process.

A draft Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) will also be prepared. This is a process through which the identification, research, analysis and record of the anticipated impact of any proposed law, policy or measure on children’s human rights and wellbeing is made.

In accordance with section 8 of the Islands Scotland Act 2018, an Island Communities Impact Assessment (ICIA) screening document will be prepared. If a full ICIA is required, it will determine any likely significantly different effect of the draft Plan and assess the extent to which OIC considers that the Plan can be developed or delivered in such a manner as to improve or mitigate, for island communities, the outcomes resulting from it.

Stage 3: Draft Plan reviewed by the Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate and approval of the draft Plan by Scottish Ministers for public consultation

December 2022 – July 2024.

Scottish Ministers will consider the draft plan along with the associated documents and provide feedback. Once permission is granted, the draft Plan will be published on the OIC website and brought to the attention of interested parties via the methods outlined in Table 1 below.

Stage 4: Publication of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and 12 week consultation

Including: Strategic Environmental Assessment, partial Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment, Equality Impact Assessment, Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment and Island Communities Impact Assessment: Expected August 2024 – November 2024.

The draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan is expected to be published in Summer 2024 and there will be a public consultation on the draft Plan from August 2024 – November 2024. Consultation events will be held in multiple geographical locations and on a number of dates, in order to maximise participation opportunity. These events will be advertised online, via email and in the printed press. Consultation information will be available from the website and will be sent out in email alerts to our stakeholder database; where face to face events are not possible, on-line resources will be used. Following these events, written submissions of feedback will be invited.

In accordance with the Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005, the consultation period for the draft Plan and SEA will be advertised in the relevant newspapers. OIC will take such further steps as it considers appropriate to secure that the proposals contained in the draft Plan are brought to the attention of interested persons.

Table 1: Summary of consultation events proposed and indicative timescales

*SEA = Strategic Environmental Assessment; HRA = Habitats Regulations Appraisal; BRIA = Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment; EqIA = Equalities Impact Assessment; CRWIA = Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment; ICIA = Island Communities Impact Assessment

Stage 5: Review of the draft Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan and supporting information

In response to comments made during consultation (Winter 2024 /Spring 2025); all drafts to OIC committees for endorsement Summer 2025; submission to Scottish Ministers for approval Summer/Autumn 2025.

The draft Plan and relevant supporting documents will be revised in response to comments made during consultation prior to submission to Scottish Ministers.

Stage 6: Consideration by Scottish Ministers followed by adoption and publication of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan with supporting information

Autumn/Winter 2025. Final plan published Autumn/Winter 2025, along with a statement of modifications. Post adoption SEA statement Winter 2025.

The Scottish Ministers and the Delegate must, acting jointly, consider and make a decision as to whether to appoint an independent person to investigate and report upon the proposals contained within the draft Plan.

OIC must publish the Regional Marine Plan as soon as reasonably practicable after its adoption has been agreed by the Scottish Ministers, together with the following:

• any supporting assessments, documents and information agreed by Scottish Ministers;
• statement on any modifications that have been made to the proposals published in the consultation draft for the plan, and the reasons for those modifications;
• statement on recommendations from appointed independent person, if applicable;
• statement on recommendations from independent person that have not been implemented, if applicable.

Stage 7: Review, monitoring and reporting on Plan implementation

If an independent investigation is required, evidence gathering and report Winter 2025/Spring 2026; settling of text Spring 2026; submission to Scottish Ministers for approval and publishing Summer 2026. Ongoing review, monitoring and reporting on plan implementation and amendment of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan as required.

Following the publication of a consultation draft of the Plan the Scottish Ministers and OIC must, acting jointly, consider and make a decision as to wherever to appoint an independent person to investigate and report upon the proposals contained within the draft. In the event of a disagreement between the Scottish Ministers and OIC as to whether to appoint an independent person, the final decision rests with the Scottish Ministers. If the independent review is required, this would add approximately up to a year to publish the final Plan and associated post-adoption SEA statement, as outlined in Stage 6.

Once the plan is published following either stage 6 or 7, it will then be subject to review, monitoring and reporting of plan implementation, and amendment of the Plan will be carried out as required. As the marine environment is constantly developing and evolving, it is important that OIC continue to monitor and evaluate the Plan.

OIC must keep the following under review:

• the effects of the policies in the Plan;
• the effectiveness of the policies in securing that the objectives for which the Plan was prepared and adopted are met;
• the progress being made towards securing the objectives;
• the progress being made towards securing that the objectives in the regional marine plan secure the objectives in the national marine plan.

OIC will also prepare a report on the matters kept under review and submit this to the Scottish Ministers. The first report must be published within five years from the date of adoption of the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan. OIC must then consider and decide if the Regional Marine Plan needs to be amended or replaced.

Appendix 1: Summary of Orkney’s key marine spatial planning activities 2008 - date

Appendix 2: Orkney Marine Planning Advisory Group members

*SEPA were unable to initially formally confirm membership until cyber-attack issues resolved.

Appendix 3: Acronym and Abbreviations list

Table 2: Simplified schematic of indicative timeline for preparation stages for the Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan

Stages refer to those given above.

* See acronym list.
If independent investigation is required, this will take approximately another year.