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Article
Peer-Review Record

Under the Surface: Climatic and Societal Challenges in Marine Spatial Planning in the Westfjords of Iceland

Climate 2023, 11(8), 172; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli11080172
by Maria Wilke 1,* and Sigríður Kristjánsdóttir 2
Reviewer 2:
Reviewer 3:
Climate 2023, 11(8), 172; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli11080172
Submission received: 29 June 2023 / Revised: 5 August 2023 / Accepted: 12 August 2023 / Published: 17 August 2023

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report


Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

Author Response

Thank you for your review. The following changes were made (in italics) based on your feedback.  

To be considered by the authors:

  1. The Discussion reveals the shortcomings of the MSP system and the concerns of the stakeholders but I would like the article’s authors to derive from this situation some recommendations to be possibly included in Conclusions.
  • Some recommendations had already been included in the conclusion, but more were added in response to this comment.
  1. The reading of the article seems to reveal that the aquaculture activity has provoked a big shift in the Westfjords region and the activity in which its population is engaged. As a reviewer, I miss a further elaboration on this issue and, again, some possible recommendation for the near future.
  • It is true that aquaculture is a big contention point. We added a section on this in the conclusion with some general recommendations for the Icelandic government and planning agency. However, we cannot go too much into detail with this particular point as the aquaculture industry, their licensing and monitoring processes and the consequences thereof would be outside of the scope of this paper and were not studied in depth as part of this research. They should, however, be further studied in this ongoing, and politicised, development.

To be reviewed by the authors:

  1. After : capital letters??? This happens in the title of the article, lines 46 and 372.
  • We have changed these instances.
  1. In line 77. Even if an…it should say Even if a
  • Changed accordingly

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

The article under review was prepared at a high level.

The article actualizes a significant scientific and practical problem related to the need to involve the public in the processes of socio-economic and spatial planning. The significance and relevance of the issue increases even more in relation to Iceland, on the territory of which the processes of climate change are very intensive.

The interpretation of the problems of planning the territorial development of coastal areas and maritime territories is also of high scientific importance. This is especially important in the context of the increasing problems of reducing the population of Arctic species of living organisms, the rational and careful organization of economic activity in the coastal zone, the development of sea tourism and other areas of economic activity.

Based on the methods of in-depth interviews with local communities, the authors of the article show, on the one hand, concern about the problems of development of territories of residence on the part of the local population, on the other hand, their low involvement in these processes and the difficulty of exerting a real influence on certain management processes.

The reviewed study is especially important from the point of view of improving and optimizing the processes of grass-roots spatial and socio-economic planning at the level of local communities and has an important educational function aimed at attracting broad public and managerial attention to the issues under study.

 

As a comment, the reviewer considers it necessary to add a section with an overview of world experience (possibly within the framework of the "discussion"). It is necessary to analyze similar experience of other polar countries - Canada, Norway, Russia, etc. It is necessary to point out common problems and compare approaches in organizing measures to solve this problems. How can the experience of other countries be applied in Iceland?

Author Response

Thank you for your review. The following changes have been made (in italics) based on your feedback: 

As a comment, the reviewer considers it necessary to add a section with an overview of world experience (possibly within the framework of the "discussion"). It is necessary to analyze similar experience of other polar countries - Canada, Norway, Russia, etc. It is necessary to point out common problems and compare approaches in organizing measures to solve this problems. How can the experience of other countries be applied in Iceland?

  • Examples from Norway and Canada have been added to the discussion, and what Icelandic MSP could take from their experience. In terms of Russia, only documents relating to the Baltic Sea, and there relating more to other Baltic Sea states and transboundary collaboration between states, were found, and after evaluation, excluded from the discussion here, as the Arctic focus was not given.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 3 Report

The abstract should do a better task of summarizing the main point of the article. More general statements about the results were used. It currently does not provide sufficient outcome detail of the current study. The story could be improved better and more clearly. With that in mind, it's a good idea to rewrite your summary with your values and main conclusion. For example, it is a shortcoming that the abstract does not contain any conclusions, which are mainly included in the title and the aim of the article.

 

Overall, I thought the Introduction did not adequately describe the intellectual context within which the study was carried out: why this study was done? What new information is provided by this work that is absent in earlier studies? It is very vague and not concretes the main goals. Need to indicate these issues.

 

Cannot access literature 33 in the literatures given as Lines 155-156: [33, Wilke & Kristjánsdóttir, in prep.). In addition, it would not be appropriate to give literature “in prep”.

 

United Nations. Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. 2015. Available online: A/RES/70/1.https://sdgs.un.org/sites/default/files/publications/21252030%20Agenda%20for%20Sustainable%20De-velopment%20web.pdf (Accessed on 13.09.2022).

 

Any similar literature should be corrected.

 

 

Author Response

Thank you for your review. The following changes (in italics) have been made based on your feedback: 

The abstract should do a better task of summarizing the main point of the article. More general statements about the results were used. It currently does not provide sufficient outcome detail of the current study. The story could be improved better and more clearly. With that in mind, it's a good idea to rewrite your summary with your values and main conclusion. For example, it is a shortcoming that the abstract does not contain any conclusions, which are mainly included in the title and the aim of the article.

  • The abstract was re-written. Sections at the start were shortened in order to add sections on specific results as well as recommendations for Icelandic MSP.

Overall, I thought the Introduction did not adequately describe the intellectual context within which the study was carried out: why this study was done? What new information is provided by this work that is absent in earlier studies? It is very vague and not concretes the main goals. Need to indicate these issues.

  • A paragraph was added in the introduction to clarify the objectives and reasons for this study.

Cannot access literature 33 in the literatures given as Lines 155-156: [33, Wilke & Kristjánsdóttir, in prep.). In addition, it would not be appropriate to give literature “in prep”. United Nations. Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. 2015. Available online: A/RES/70/1.https://sdgs.un.org/sites/default/files/publications/21252030%20Agenda%20for%20Sustainable%20De-velopment%20web.pdf (Accessed on 13.09.2022). Any similar literature should be corrected.

  • References were changed accordingly, and links all checked and updated.

 

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

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