Workshop looks to marine research & innovation to drive EU growth and jobs

Participants from Ireland, Spain, Portugal, France and the UK aimed to complete an Action Plan for the European Union Atlantic Strategy 2014 -2020. This was the fifth and final workshop in the Atlantic Forum consultation process, during which conferences have already been held in Azores, Brest, Bilbao, and Cardiff as well as an on-line public consultation and the input from a range of stakeholders including the European Parliament, the Committee of the Regions and the Atlantic Regions.

Mr. Simon Coveney, TD, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, who opened the event , said: “This is an important and exciting juncture for both Ireland and the EU to put in place an action plan to address the major opportunities associated with our shared Atlantic resource. Ireland has been a proactive supporter of this strategy and action plan contributing through the Government’s Marine Coordination Group and represented by the Marine Institute’s Dr. Peter Heffernan on the EU’s leadership Forum.”

The Irish Government has also recognised the important role that Ireland’s ocean wealth will play in national recovery and growth. An Integrated Marine Plan for Ireland - Harnessing Our Ocean Wealth, was published last July setting a target of increasing turnover to over €6.4Billion by 2020 (88%) and to double the value of our ocean wealth to 2.4% GDP by 2030.

A team from the Commission’s Maritime Affairs Directorate, led by Director General Lowri Evans, presented an outline of the draft action plan followed by a discussion on the possibilities for funding the Atlantic Strategy and its implementation and monitoring. The key overarching themes in the Atlantic Strategy are: Implementing the Ecosystem Approach; Reducing Europe’s Carbon Footprint; Exploiting the Atlantic’s seafloor resources; Responding to threats & emergencies; and Socially inclusive growth.

The Action Plan for the implementation of the Maritime Strategy for the Atlantic is expected to be adopted by the European Commission in the coming weeks and endorsed by the Council of the European Union during the Irish Presidency, a key priority of the Irish Presidency in the Integrated Maritime Policy area.