The central goal of the AquaSpace project is to provide increased space of high water quality for aquaculture by adopting the Ecosystem Approach to Aquaculture (EAA) and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) and so to deliver food security and increased employment opportunities through economic growth.
AquaSpace aims to provide solutions to reduce Europe’s dependency on imported aquatic products, currently at 64% of total consumption (for finfish).
Our detailed objectives by workpackage are:
WP2 Accurately identify industry-wide issues and options
• apply an EAA framework to characterise key influences on the use of space by aquaculture including: governance, legal, environmental, economic, social and cultural issues;
• determine and prioritise the key issues constraining the growth of aquaculture in Europe: offshore, coastal, and inland, in close consultation with stakeholders.
WP3 Develop and deliver tailored tools
• characterise existing tools for assessing spatial issues in relation to aquaculture and external factors such as climate change that will influence selection of aquaculture sites.
• customise or further develop operational tool(s) allowing for a risk-based analysis of spatial management options to support the licensing process and facilitate investments, defined in a given spatial planning context taking into account the constraints identified in WP2 and informed by the real world of the case studies (WP4).
WP4 Work collaboratively with stakeholders on validation of tools
• using a wide range of case studies, define ecosystem boundaries in space and time, and identify the relevant stakeholders through close engagement of local end-users in an issue-focused, user-driven and scale-sensitive manner to test and assess relevant tools and document their utility.
WP5 Synthesise outcomes for post-project legacy and impact
• evaluate and compare the outcomes of case studies and the suitability of different tools, synthesising the lessons learned across spatial and temporal scales, institutional and governance levels, environments, culture practices, and cultivated species.
• work with users to produce an innovative web-based platform (building on successful experiences such as the ecasatoolbox) to deliver the results of the project outputs (tools, evaluations, case studies, synthesis) with entry tailored to the needs of different user profiles (industry, planners, public) providing information and operational tools to end-users.
WP6 Impacts through effective Knowledge Exchange
• exchange information throughout the project with a selected panel of key stakeholders in a User Reference Group (URG e.g. FEAP, EAS, GFCM, IUCN, ICES…) to ensure maximum relevance and impact.
• develop a Masters level online module on MSP for Aquaculture for inclusion in MSc programmes on Aquaculture and Marine Spatial Planning to impact future planners.
• research and develop a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course on MSP for Aquaculture to impact existing planners and industry.
• disseminate the project’s results using newsletters, media presentations and articles, Web 2.0 tools, and smartphone apps, anchored in science published by the partnership in peer-reviewed open access journal papers, through an edited book and a school video competition to widen AquaSpace impact to the maximum extent possible.
• develop a business case for licensing a subset of the intellectual property (IP) developed within the project to an existing or bespoke commercial or other entity to ensure lasting impact.
