General Perspective

highlights the marine space as a distinctly public space and aims for balance and fairness in addressing the various interests of all stakeholders. The plan aspires to ensure the ongoing provision of ecosystem services over time. The perspective that views the sea as a public space stems from the doctrinal principle of the Public Trust Interest, which has been adopted by many developed, democratic states. This doctrine assigns the management of natural resources, such as coasts and seas, to the state in order to protect them for the benefit of the general public. One of the foremost objectives of the Israel Marine Spatial Plan will most likely be the achievement of balance and, beyond that, a synergy between the vast range of uses and interests of various stakeholders in the marine space, on the one hand, and the marine environment itself, on the other.

The methodology that has guided the planning process for the Israel Marine Spatial Plan derives from cumulative global experience in the preparation of regional and national marine spatial plans, with emphasis on the principles of Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) and Ecosystem-Based Management (EBM).

The Israel Marine Spatial Plan aspires to be a policy paper and spatial plan in one. The plan offers a vision, goals, and forward-looking objectives, as well as a strategy and policy tools for management of the marine space. Some of the strategy and policy tools will be general and inclusive of the entire marine space, and some will distinguish between various marine areas along the three geographic dimensions and according to periodic distinctions over differing times and varying ranges.