People with a passion for the UK’s coastline are being invited to help make history by being part of the largest coastal marine citizen science project ever undertaken. The £1.7m Capturing Our Coast project, funded through the Heritage Lottery Fund, is designed to further our understanding of the abundance and distribution of marine life around […]
As in previous years this annual celebration of our marine and coastal environment – National Marine Week – is so plum full of activity that it’s expanded to a fortnight! Organised by the Wildlife Trusts to raise awareness of the richness and diversity of the UK’s marine life Wildlife Trusts (both coastal and inland) around […]
Natural England has produced a series of marine site packages for the North West providing advice to help identify the impacts of marine activities within sensitive areas. Each package provides a site overview within a Marine Protected Area (MPA), its conservation objectives and advice for restoring, conserving and protecting its environmental features. Site packages include the […]
Scotland’s first National Marine Plan was adopted on 25 March 2015 and laid before the Scottish Parliament on 27 March 2015 Setting out a single statutory planning framework for all marine activity – existing and emering, including devolved and reserved functions – within Scottish waters, the plan covers Scotland’s seas to the 200 nautical miles boundary and has a 3 […]
On behalf of the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), marine consultancy ABPmer and environmental economics consultancy eftec have recently produced a report providing research into how the implementation of the Ecosystem Approach (EA) can be improved within marine planning. The Marine Policy Statement requires the MMO to adopt an ecosystem approach in planning to reduce human pressures […]
Natural England has a statutory obligation to provide conservation advice for all Marine Protected Areas within English territorial waters (0-12 nautical miles). Natural England is currently working alongside the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), undertaking a project to improve conservation advice for terrestrial and marine designated sites. On the 30th March 2015 a report was […]
The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) has issued its e-newsletter for February 2015. The content includes the opening of the 2015 round of the ICES Science Fund for project proposals as well as a review of previously funded projects, a call for papers for the ICES Annual Science Conference 2015 which […]
The North West Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (NW-IFCA) has recently produced its Biosecurity Plan 2014-2019. The plan aims to reduce marine invasive non-native species (INNS) and shellfish disease within its territories. The plan presents the current marine environmental status within the NW-IFCA district, potential threats and measures to enhance biosecurity. For more information follow the link.
Marine aggregate activity occupies a small proportion of the UK’s continental shelf for the construction industry. There is a responsibility for operators to manage their licensed areas and adopt sustainable extraction practices. The British Marine Aggregate Producers Association (BMAPA) published a sustainable development strategy to provide a framework for operators to follow. Following the strategy […]
The winter 2014 edition of the Solway Firth Newsletter: Tidelines is now available to download from the Solway Firth Partnership website. The newsletter provides information on the following topics – Making the Most of the Coast Project, Solway’s AONB, plastic debris in the coastal and marine environment, Cumbria’s Marine Conservation Zones, Manx Wildlife Trust, Cally […]