Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan

Appendix 7: Glossary and Acronyms

Appendix 7a Table A4: Glossary

Activity/activities: Any activity/activities that require authorisation from a public authority and falls within devolved competencies, e.g. ‘licensable marine activities’ identified under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 and activities licensed under the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011.

Adaptation: Adaptation refers to adjustments in ecological, social or economic systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli and their effects or impacts.

Amenity: Amenity refers to the positive elements that contribute to the overall character and/or enjoyment of an area by residents, visitors and other users.

Authorisation or enforcement decision: The determination of any authorisation or any decision relating to enforcement as detailed and further expanded upon in the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010, section 15.

Appendix 1, which is not exhaustive, contains relevant licensing and consent regimes, and associated processes, administered by public authorities to manage marine development and activities.

Benthic: Benthic refers to anything associated with or occurring on the bottom of a body of water.

Biodiversity: The variability in living organisms and the ecological complexes of which they are part. This includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems (UN Convention on Biological Diversity, 1992).

Biodiversity enhancement: Biodiversity enhancement is an approach to development and/or activities that aims to leave biodiversity in a measurably better state than beforehand. This means protecting, restoring, or creating environmental features that are of greater biodiversity value than any losses associated with the original development and/or activity.

Blue carbon: Carbon stored in marine habitats, e.g. seagrass beds.

Carbon sequestration: The process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Co-creation: Engaging in an intentional relationship in order to make something together e.g. a mitigation measure.

Coexistence: Where multiple developments, activities or uses can exist alongside or close to each other in the same place and/or at the same time.

Community wealth building: A people-centred approach to local economic development, which redirects wealth back into the local economy, and places control and benefits into the hands of local people.

Compliance: The conformance to the requirements of the specific management actions of marine plans by relevant ocean users.

Cultural heritage: An expression of the ways of living developed by a community and passed on from generation to generation. It can include customs, practices, places, objects, artistic expressions and values, and have aesthetic, historic, scientific, social or spiritual aspects.

Cumulative effect/impact: Additional changes caused by a proposed development in conjunction with other developments or the combined effect of a set of developments taken together.

Decarbonisation: Reducing the amount of gaseous carbon compounds released by buildings, activities or operations.

Developer: An entity that is taking forward an application for a proposed development and/or activity.

Development: Any construction, building, engineering, mining, other operation and/or works, e.g. planning permission or a works licence, that require authorisation from a public authority under devolved competencies. This can include new development, or alterations, extensions or changes in material use to existing development or land.

Devolved Competence: Matters within the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament and/or the executive competence of the Scottish Ministers.

Ecosystem services: The processes by which the environment produces resources utilised by humans, such as clean air, water, food, energy and materials.

Ecosystem approach: The ecosystem approach is a strategy for the integrated management of land, water and living resources that promotes conservation and sustainable use in an equitable way.

Effect(s): An effect is the result or outcome of an action.

Enhancement: Enhancement measures are those that actually improve the condition of the development site (or an alternative site) after the development or activity is complete.

Guiding principles: A set of values that establishes a framework for expected behaviour and decision making.

Historic environment: The physical evidence for human activity that connects people with place, linked with the associations we can see, feel and understand.

Historic environment asset: A physical element of the historic environment, e.g. a building, monument, site, place, area or landscape, identified as having cultural significance.

Impact(s): The influence of an action on something or someone.

Implementation: The process of using marine plans in decision-making or actions.

Just transition: A just transition is both the outcome – a fairer, greener future for all – and the process that must be undertaken in partnership with those impacted by the transition to net zero. Just transition is how we get to a net zero and climate resilient economy, in a way that delivers fairness and tackles inequality and injustice.

Marine and/or coastal user(s): Legitimate users of the marine and/or coastal environment for purposes such as, but not limited to, fishing, aquaculture, shipping, transport, energy generation, utilities, recreation and other economic and/or community activities.

Mitigation: The act of reducing adverse effects or impacts.

Mitigation hierarchy: The mitigation hierarchy indicates the order in which the impacts of development and/or activities should be considered and addressed. These are:

• avoid: by removing the impact at the outset;
• minimise: by reducing the impact so that it is as low as practicable through the project design process;
• mitigate: by taking measures to reduce unavoidable adverse impacts.

National development: National developments are developments of national importance identified in the National Planning Framework.

Natural capital: Natural capital is the stock of renewable and non-renewable natural resources (e.g. plants, animals, air, water, soils, minerals) that combine to yield a flow of benefits to people, that are commonly referred to as ecosystem services. The UK Natural Capital Committee (2017) defines natural capital as:

• ‘the elements of nature that directly or indirectly produce value to people, including ecosystems, species, freshwater, land, minerals, the air and oceans, as well as natural processes and functions’.

Nature-based solutions: Nature-based solutions are actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural and modified ecosystems that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human wellbeing and biodiversity benefits.

Net zero: Scotland has set a target to become ‘net zero’ by 2045. This means that the amount of greenhouse gas emissions put into the atmosphere and the amount taken out will add up to zero.

Orkney Islands marine region: The area defined at Article 8 of the Scottish Marine Regions Order 2015 (SSI 2015/193) within the boundaries of the Scottish marine area (that is within the seaward limits of Scottish territorial waters (0-12 nautical miles)).

Positive effects for biodiversity: The development of land should contribute to securing positive effects for biodiversity, as detailed in the National Planning Framework, and this approach to planning is designed to help halt and reverse biodiversity loss and to invest in nature-based solutions, benefiting people and nature.

Precautionary principle: Defined in the UN Rio Declaration on Environment and Development 1992 as follows: ‘Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation.’

Quality of life: The degree to which an individual is healthy, comfortable, and able to participate in or enjoy life events.

Resilience (climate): The capacity of environmental, social and economic systems to cope with a hazardous event, trend or disturbance, responding or reorganising in ways that maintain their essential function, identity and structure, while also maintaining the capacity for adaptation, learning and transformation.

Sector: A sector is an area of the economy in which businesses share the same, or a related, business activity, product or service.

Special qualities: In relation to features of designated landscapes, e.g. a national Scenic Area.

Sustainable development: Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Synergistic benefits: Benefits that occur when the sum of two effects together is greater than the sum of the effects separately.

Use: Any legitimate use of the marine and/or coastal environment that is exercised under a public right and that does not require authorisation from a public authority, e.g. freedom of navigation for shipping or the exercise of public access rights for the purposes of recreation.

Wellbeing: The state of being comfortable, healthy or happy.

Wellbeing economy: Building an economy that is inclusive and that promotes sustainability, prosperity and resilience, where businesses can thrive and innovate, and that supports all of our communities across Scotland to access opportunities that deliver local growth and wellbeing.

Wild Land Area: Wildness is a quality which people experience by a perceptual response. Wild land areas are the most extensive areas where these qualities are best expressed.

Appendix 7b Acronyms

CAR Controlled water activities

CCAP Coastal Change Adaptation Plan

CES Crown Estate Scotland

COMAH Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations 2015

EIA Environmental Impact Assessment

EMEC European Marine Energy Centre

EMODnet European Marine Observation and Data Network

EPS European Protected Species

GCR Geological Conservation Review

HEPS Historic Environment Policy for Scotland

HES Historic Environment Scotland

HRA Habitats Regulations Appraisal

HSE Health and Safety Executive

IFMI Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement

INNS Invasive Non-Native Species

INTOG Innovation and Targeted Oil & Gas

LNCS Local Nature Conservation Sites

MARPOL The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships

MCA Maritime and Coastguard Agency

MD-LOT Marine Directorate – Licensing Operations Team

MHWS Mean High Water Springs

MOD Ministry of Defence

MPA Marine Protected Area

MSPACE Marine Spatial Planning Addressing Climate Effects

NMPi National Marine Plan interactive

NNS Non-Native Species

NPF4 National Planning Framework 4

OFA Orkney Fisheries Association

ORIFG Orkney Regional Inshore Fisheries Group

PAD Protocol for Accidental Archaeological Discoveries

PAN Planning Advice Note

PMF Priority Marine Feature

RBMP River Basin Management Plans

RIFG Regional Inshore Fisheries Group

SAC Special Area of Conservation

SEPA Scottish Environment Protection Agency

SPA Special Protection Area

SPRI Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory

SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest

STS Ship-to-ship

UKHO UK Hydrographic Office

UN United Nations

UxO Unexploded ordnance

VMS Vessel Monitoring System