1 1.10 Application of estuarine and coastal classifications in marine ...

achieved by identifying barriers to the flow of water (i.e. major roads, levees or dikes)
relative to known salmon movement corridors such as barriers to juvenile-bearing fresh
water (Skagit River), salt water (Skagit Bay, Padilla Bay, Swinomish Channel) or adjacent
to both. For sustainability, a higher score was assigned to larger areas of wetland with the
assumption that a larger area is more sustainable than a smaller area. For ease of restoration,
public land was scored more highly than private and natural vegetation (forest, marsh)
scored more highly than agriculture and impervious surfaces and plots with fewer owners
received higher scores than many owners. To define the priority ranking classes, scores
were summed for every quarter-acre cell, and the scores were divided into four priority
ranges with Priority 1 being the highest priority and 4 the lowest (Figure 30).
1.10.11 CLASSIFYING AND MAPPING SOCIO-ECONOMIC PATTERNS
Human use patterns, anthropogenic stressors/pressures and economic evaluations of
goods and services are some of the human dimensions data that are increasingly being
represented by classifications that play an important role in marine spatial planning and the
evaluation of potential threats. Not only do these data help in planning, but also provide an
effective way to evaluate the likely economic impact of marine spatial planning decisions.
Human dimensions data are complex to depict spatially and very diverse, but significant
advances have been made to map social data including ecosystem valuations that can help
prioritize management activities.
Economic value can be shown in various ways, Figure 31 shows a section of the Baltic
Sea that has been classified according to its tourism value represented by recreational boating
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