OCEaN responds to call for evidence on the European Ocean Act

Members of the Offshore Coalition for Energy and Nature in the North and Baltic Seas welcome the European Commission’s call for evidence regarding the upcoming Ocean Act. We acknowledge this as an opportunity to strengthen Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP), increase policy coherence, and better align offshore wind, grid, climate, and biodiversity objectives at national, regional, and EU level.

In particular, the Ocean Act should:

• Strengthen MSP as a central and strategic governance tool
• Strengthen the cross-border and sea-basin perspective
• Enable co-existence and multi-use
• Improve data sharing

In OCEaN’s response to the call for evidence, we outline our insights on these topics, offer suggestions for improvement, and provide supporting examples on existing practices, frameworks, and initiatives that can act as inspiration.

We also underline the importance of this call for evidence being published alongside the consultation for the revision of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), as better alignment between the MSFD, MSPD, and project-level assessments should be ensured. Monitoring, assessment and reporting cycles should be aligned to the greatest extent possible, with synchronised implementation across Member States. As the MSFD establishes the overarching objective of GES, it should inform the ecological boundaries within which MSP and all sectoral policies operate and be underscored in the Ocean Act.

By reinforcing MSP as a strategic, integrated, and participatory planning tool, and by strengthening links with environmental objectives, regional cooperation, and ocean observation, the European Ocean Act can enable a coherent and future-proof governance framework for Europe’s seas. OCEaN stands ready to support this process and contribute to implementation across sea basins and sectors.