» Reserves



Blackwater Estuary MCZ faces double challenge from Bradwell nuclear power station

The Blackwater, Crouch, Roach and Colne Estuaries Marine Conservation Zone in Essex (see map below) was designated a MCZMCZ Marine Conservation Zone in December 2013 on account, primarily, of its native oyster beds. The MCZ incorporates the Colne Estuary SPASPA Special Protection Areas (SPAs) are strictly protected sites classified in accordance with Article 4 of […]

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Scottish fishermen alleged to be illegally scallop dredging in marine SAC

The Sunday Herald reports, 6th September 2015: Fishermen are facing prosecution for allegedly breaching a ban on scallop dredging designed to protect a wealth of seabed wildlife off the west coast of Scotland. The Scottish Government’s marine watchdog has seized dredging gear and submitted a report to the Procurator Fiscal accusing fishermen of illegally scraping […]

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Irish Sea needs more MCZs to protect biodiversity and fisheries, says N.W. Wildlife Trust

The Independent reports, 25th August 2015: A habitat as diverse as that in the Amazon rainforest will face ecological disaster unless the Government takes urgent action to restrict access to prime fishing grounds in the Irish Sea, marine conservationists have warned. They say ocean floor habitats are at high risk of deterioration because of “unsustainable” […]

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Pew Trust explains the Global Ocean Legacy Project

Matt Rand, Director, Pew Foundation, reports 16th June 2015: The ocean plays an essential role in sustaining life on our planet. It covers nearly three-fourths of the globe and is home to nearly half of the world’s known species—and many more yet to be discovered. The ocean provides sustenance for billions of people and myriad […]

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Call for more protection of seagrass meadows

BBC News reports, 27th June 2015: “Seagrasses — the underwater plants that act as nursery grounds for young fish — need more protection, say scientists. Monitoring of seagrass meadows off the North Wales coast found areas damaged by the likes of boat moorings, anchors and vehicles crossing at low tide had reduced value to the […]

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Dredging ban for South Arran MPA

C.O.A.S.T. (Community of Arran Seabed Trust) reports June 2015: In a broadly welcome statement Richard Lochhead, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment, announced yesterday that a Marine Conservation Order (MCO) will be put before parliament this week setting out conservation measures including banning the highly destructive practice of scallop dredging within the South […]

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Will the SNP honour its commitment to the Isle of Arran?

The Daily Telegraph reports, 27th May 2015: The Scottish Government is set to reject pleas by islanders to protect the seas around their coast From afar, the hills of the Isle of Arran famously resemble a sleeping warrior. But the people of the largest island in the Firth of Clyde are alarmed. For they fear […]

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Award for Isle of Arran MPA and COAST founder

The Community of Arran Seabed Trust (COAST) reports in its April 2015 newsletter: “Howard Wood, chairman and co-founder of COAST has been awarded the highly prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize for his work with COAST promoting sustainable management of Arran’s seas. It is the first time this international award, the largest prize for grass roots environmentalists […]

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Pitcairn Islands now host the world’s largest marine reserve

The Pew Trust reports, 19th March 2015: “Yesterday, the United Kingdom committed to create the world’s largest fully protected marine reserve in the remote waters surrounding the Pitcairn Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. “There is growing recognition of the oceans’ essential role in sustaining life on the planet,” said Callum Roberts, a Pew marine […]

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Marinet raises co-location principle for MCZs with UK Marine Minister

Marinet has written a letter, dated 13th March 2015, to the UK’s Minister for Marine Affairs about the failure to develop the co-location principle whereby MCZsMCZ Marine Conservation Zone are located in conjunction with sites featuring commercial use of the sea.

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As in the UK, do Australian marine reserves “serve their purpose”?

The Guardian reports, 25th February 2015: “The Jervis commonwealth marine reserve sprawls across 2,473 square kilometres of wild ocean, from depths of 120 metres to five kilometres. “It is far offshore, over the horizon from two of the nation’s oldest and most loved marine parks — the NSW-state-run Jervis Bay marine park and the commonwealth-managed […]

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“No take zones” could benefit marine wildlife and fishing industry

Authors in the Journal of Applied Ecology, March 2015, report: “The study showed that a network of ‘limited-take zones’, in which trawling and dredging is allowed, would have far fewer benefits for wildlife and fisheries than a network of fully protected ‘no-take zones’. However, the study also revealed that a compromise based on mixing no-take […]

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South African marine reserves are struggling with serious problems

The National Geographic, December 2014, reports: “In fish-loving, fishing-mad South Africa, the anguish of declining catches and vanishing species is acute. But if there’s a crisis of fish, there’s also a crisis of fishing. Half of South Africa’s subsistence fishing communities are described as food insecure, because the foundation of their livelihood is in jeopardy. […]

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English MCZ delivery: Government acting like a “State hooligan who is out of control”

We provide here the Text of the Marinet submission to Defra concerning its current (February 2015) public consultation of what it terms as its “next tranche” of English Marine Conservation Zones.

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Great British Oceans campaign issues mission statement

We provide here the Statement, February 2015, issued by the Great British Oceans campaign (Marine Reserves Coalition) in support of the creation of marine reserves in the UK Overseas Territories of the Pitcairn Islands, Ascension Island, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. “The UK has the fifth largest area of ocean in the […]

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Defra consults on 23 proposed new English MCZs

Defra has opened a public consultation on 23 proposed new Marine conservation Zones in English seas. The consultation runs from 30th January to 24th April 2015. In their announcement of this consultation, Defra state: “This consultation is to seek your views on whether it would be appropriate to designate each of the 23 proposed Marine […]

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Will the UK act to create large marine reserves in the Atlantic and Pacific?

The Guardian reports, 10th February 2015: “Pressure is mounting on the UK government and opposition parties to commit to creating at least one massive marine reserve in the Pacific or Atlantic to protect rare and threatened whales, sharks, fish and corals ahead of the general election. A coalition of over 100 conservation groups, prominent academics […]

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Irish Sea “open to an environmental disaster” says Wildlife Trust

The Wildlife Trusts, North West, report in their January 2015 newsletter: “The Government is leaving the Irish Sea open to an environmental disaster by postponing plans to create a network of ‘nature reserves’. This is confirmed in the announcement of the second consultation on Marine Conservation Zones (MCZsMCZ Marine Conservation Zone), which has excluded five […]

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Terramar’s The Daily Catch reports on Marinet publication, Conserving The Great Blue

Terramar reports, 23rd January 2015, in its online publication The Daily Catch on the Marinet publication Conserving The Great Blue authored by Deborah Wright. Conserving The Great Blue argues that the rapid deterioration of the world’s seas calls for a breakthrough in our reasoning and a fundamental change in our behaviour. Deborah Wright says: “The […]

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US quadruples the size of Pacific Remote Islands marine reserve

Quartz.com reports, 25th September 2014: “The US is establishing the world’s largest marine protected area to preserve some of the country’s most wildlife-rich waters in the Pacific Ocean. US president Barack Obama will sign an executive proclamation today, three months after he initially proposed action, detailing the expansion of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National […]

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