First steps towards an implementation of coastal management: From theory to regional practise

The European Integrated Project “Science and Policy Integration for Coastal Systems Assessment” (SPICOSA) started in 2007 with the aim to develop a selfevolving, holistic research approach for integrated assessment of Coastal Systems. Aim is to support the implementation of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) policies. The result is a series of manuals containing guidelines. Our objective was to apply these guidelines in the Oder/Odra estuary region and to critically reflect the outcome and our regional experiences. The approach is problem “Policy Issue” oriented and provides guidance how to approach a coastal problem. The application in the Oder/Odra estuary region was useful, clarified the joint understanding of specific coastal problems and the way how to come to a solution. The guidelines helped us to structure the existing ideas, motivated discussions and lead to useful visualizations. In detail, the approach still has several short-comings. However, the SPICOSA methodology can serve as a background for German guidelines, but has to be modified.