01/14/2010: "A New "Marine Interagency Team" Proposed By Ranker"

RANKER-evergreen_edu_mag_001 (49k image) (Evergreen Edu mag photo)

Senator Kevin Ranker has introduced a bill that would require the state to create a “marine interagency team” that would develop plans “that will allow for the spacing out of further residence in marine regions for the sake of keeping the coastlines ecologically balanced.”

The term used repeatedly in the bill is “Marine spatial planning” (MSP).

What that means within the context of the bill is helpfully stated as:

“a public process of analyzing and allocating the spatial and temporal distribution of human activities in marine areas to achieve ecological, economic, and social objectives. Often this type of planning is done to reduce conflicts among uses, to reduce environmental impacts, to facilitate compatible uses, to align management decisions, and to meet other objectives determined by the planning process. Marine spatial planning ensures environmental protection and facilitates uses that do no harm to the environment."

In it’s most simple form, MSP can be no more than developing a map that shows existing uses, as a way of identifying where there may be conflicts between users, and where there is a way to make improvements on how marine areas are used, and by whom.

MSP can of course be expanded to include a number of things beyond map building. For example, the Ranker bill proposes that “the governor shall chair a marine interagency team that is composed of representatives of each of the agencies in the governor's natural resources cabinet with management responsibilities for marine waters,” and then adds “including the independent agencies.”

One of the goals is to work with the Puget Sound Action Agenda, and develop plans for waters in the Puget Sound area, the outer coast, the Columbia river estuary and work with the state of Oregon (it is not clear if Oregon would welcome Washington’s help); and a long list of other commissions, agencies, state and federal task forces, and Canada.

There may be a number of tall hurdles to clear before this comes to a vote, but even if passed, it may be moot, in that none of it can happen unless “federal or private funding is available.”

The full text of the bill may be accessed by clicking here: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2009-10/Pdf/Bills/Senate%20Bills/6350.pdf