The blue economy is a major driver of urban and regional development, creating millions of local jobs in water-dependent sectors such as fisheries, tourism, and shipping. However, it can also contribute to carbon emissions and ecosystem degradation, while its reliance on freshwater, coastal and marine ecosystems exposes it to the impacts of climate change. As the places where the blue economy takes place, creates value and provides jobs, cities and regions play a key role in unlocking the potential of a resilient blue economy that preserves the ecosystems that sustain it. Building on a global survey of 80+ cities, regions and basins, this report highlights the costs and benefits of the blue economy at subnational level, shedding light on the link between the blue economy and water security. This analysis provides an overview of the multi-level governance of the blue economy and related gaps. It calls on cities and regions to develop resilient, inclusive, sustainable and circular (RISC-proof) blue economies by establishing the right governance conditions related to policy making, policy coherence and policy implementation. The report concludes with a RISC Assessment Framework that offers a self-evaluation tool for subnational governments.
Authors
- Published in
- Paris
Table of Contents
- Preface 5
- Foreword 6
- Acknowledgements 8
- Abbreviations and acronyms 12
- Executive summary 13
- The blue economy can be a driver of sustainable territorial development 13
- National and subnational governments use a range of tools to foster sustainable blue economies but governance gaps remain 14
- Fostering a resilient, inclusive, sustainable and circular (RISC-proof) blue economy in cities and regions calls for effective multi-level governance conditions 15
- 1 The benefits and costs of the blue economy at the territorial level 16
- Defining the blue economy 17
- Socio-economic benefits of the blue economy 22
- Non-market benefits of the blue economy 24
- Costs of unsustainable blue economies 25
- Costs of environmental and socio-economic risks for blue economies 28
- References 33
- Notes 42
- 2 Multi-level governance of the blue economy: The state of play and challenges 43
- Who does what for the blue economy across levels of government 44
- Blue economy strategies across levels of government 46
- National blue economy strategies 46
- Lead institutions 49
- Objectives 50
- Implementation 50
- Subnational blue economy strategies 51
- Lead institutions 54
- Objectives 54
- Implementation 55
- The enabling environment for the blue economy at the subnational level 56
- Capacity building and awareness raising 56
- Data and information 58
- Planning tools 59
- Economic and environmental regulation and incentives 61
- Funding and financing instruments 64
- Innovation networks 69
- Main challenges and future priorities for the blue economy at the subnational level 71
- Policy making challenges 72
- Policy coherence challenges 73
- Policy implementation challenges 75
- References 76
- Notes 81
- 3 Towards resilient, inclusive, sustainable and circular blue economies in cities and regions 82
- A framework for resilient, inclusive, sustainable and circular (RISC-proof) blue economies in cities and regions 83
- Resilience 86
- Inclusiveness 88
- Sustainability 90
- Circularity 92
- The enabling conditions for RISC-proof blue economies in cities and regions 94
- Policy making 96
- Clarify roles and responsibilities for blue economy policy 96
- Match the level of institutional capacity to blue economy policy needs 96
- Collect, analyse and share data and information and local knowledge 96
- Policy coherence 97
- Ensure effective co-ordination across water and marine ecosystems 97
- Nurture a systems approach to blue economy policy 97
- Promote a “city-basin” approach to water resources management 98
- Policy implementation 99
- Set sound economic incentives and financing frameworks 99
- Leverage regulatory frameworks and command-and-control tools 100
- Build an “ecosystem” of blue economy players 100
- References 101
- Notes 103
- 4 An Assessment Framework for resilient, inclusive, sustainable and circular (RISC-proof) blue economies in cities and regions 104
- Methodology 105
- Part 1. Assessment of the resilience, inclusiveness, sustainability and circularity of the blue economy at subnational level 110
- Resilience 110
- Inclusiveness 111
- Sustainability 112
- Circularity 114
- Part 2. Assessment of the implementation of the enabling conditions for a RISC-proof blue economy at the subnational level 115
- Policy making 115
- Clarify roles and responsibilities for blue economy policy 115
- Match the level of institutional capacity to blue economy policy needs 115
- Collect, analyse and share data and information and local knowledge 116
- Policy coherence 116
- Ensure effective co-ordination across water and marine ecosystems 116
- Nurture a systems approach to blue economy policy 117
- Promote a “city-basin” approach to water resources management 117
- Policy implementation 118
- Set sound economic incentives and financing frameworks 118
- Leverage regulatory frameworks and command-and-control tools 119
- Build an “ecosystem” of blue economy players 119
- Part 3. “Whole of water” checklist for the blue economy 120
- References 121
- Annex A. List of respondents to the OECD Global Survey on Localising the Blue Economy 122