Doctoral defence: Mihhail Fetissov “Spatial decision support systems for ecosystem-based marine management”

On 6 September at 12:15 Mihhail Fetissov will defend his doctoral thesis “Spatial decision support systems for ecosystem-based marine management”.

Supervisors:
Associate Professor Robert Aps, University of Tartu
Professor Jonne Kotta, University of Tartu

Opponent:
Professor Gerald Schernewski, Leibniz-Institute for Baltic Sea (Germany)

Summary
The maritime economy requires different types of spatial information, on which spatial decision support tools are essential to respond to crisis situations and to carry out different scenario-based analyses. This doctoral study developed web-based operational decision support tools to collect and analyse data and insights as well as to facilitate communication and discussion with stakeholders. Such an approach is illustrated by the Next-Generation Smart Response Web (NG-SRW), which enables the assessment of environmental risks associated with oil spills and the identification of better solutions to emergencies. By integrating the analysis and visualization of dynamic spill features, the benefits of potential response actions are compared to develop an appropriate response strategy. In addition, PlanWise4Blue (PW4B), a tool to assess the cumulative impact of different human pressures on marine life, was developed during the PhD. The PW4B tool can be used to predict the individual and combined effects of human activities under both current environmental conditions and future climate change. The tool has been tested in the Baltic Sea region in the Estonian marine spatial planning process to investigate the impacts of different marine management scenarios on different nature values. The results encourage the use of modelling-based scenario calculations in decision-making processes to explore effects and/or benefits of human activities to ecosystem services provision, and vice versa. Scenario analysis can be used to include society preferences of what future would they prefer and can improve transparency in decision-making processes.

The defence will be held in J. Liivi 2–127 and in Zoom (Meeting ID: 914 2372 8901, Passcode: 923828).