By Alec Taylor, marine policy officer
Yesterday, the first ever marine plan in English waters came out for public consultation (finally!). It covers roughly 55,000km2 across the Southern North Sea, and will guide how this unique and busy area should be used over the next 30 years. For perspective, that’s the same area as producing a plan for 40% of England’s land area! This marks the first in a really important stage in the management of UK seas, the first 2 of 10 plan areas in English waters covered, plus a Scottish National Marine Plan due for consultation in the next few weeks.
We’ve always been very clear that we need a forward-looking, ecosystem-based set of plans for the marine environment, for two main reasons. Firstly, activities, such as renewable energy, must be given certainty to invest and guided towards areas and times of year that avoid or minimise environmental impacts before they occur (rather than simply relying on environmental assessments for individual applications for development). On the flip side though, a plan that disregards the environment and pushes development at any costs would potentially be disastrous for our seas.
Secondly, and from a conservation perspective, the effectiveness of the Marine Protected Area network will depend in large part on support from wider marine plans. And that’s not to mention the fact that seabirds and other mobile species are not currently well-protected by MPAs, so planning is even more crucial!
We’ll be putting a thorough response into the consultation, and I would encourage you to have a read of the plan (and its summary) here. The Marine Management Organisation (who have produced the plan) have also produced the snazzy animation below!
While that plan is out for consultation, planning is getting going in the English Channel from Dover round to Dartmouth. And last week I was out and about in Langstone Harbour, on the Hampshire coast, with marine planners from the MMO and colleagues from RSPB and Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, to show the MMO the importance of this area both for wildlife and for the local economy.
Langstone is a curious place – the marshes to the north west of the harbour were reclaimed back in the mid 1750s, and now are well-established coastal grazing marshes and grasslands, protected by a concrete sea wall. Further into the harbour, old oyster beds, dating as far back as Roman times and farmed since 1819, now form ideal islands for seabirds to breed, in particular little terns, sandwich terns and Mediterranean gulls. Seagrass beds also provide home to various juvenile fish species and the whole area hosts thousands of wintering birds.
Yet these areas are under increasing pressure from the increasing impacts of our changing climate, including rising sea levels and storm surges. This is one reason why the RSPB, for example, is in the process of supplying extra shingle to form new islands for little terns to breed on, as part of the EU PANACHE Project, In the meantime, there are issues of possible disturbance from the various tourism, leisure and recreation activities going on around the area, or from unmanaged fishing in the bay itself.
We want to see these activities going on in harmony with nature, in a way that gets people out and enjoying the sea and coastline and allows coastal economies along the south coast to thrive in the long-term. We also need to factor in the changes to the coast we’re likely to see over the next 50, even 100 years. All of that needs a clear and forward-looking marine plan that can factor in these changes and set out a vision for the Channel.
So what should the future of the English Channel look like in such a plan? I’d be interested to hear your views!
Looking for little terns at RSPB's Langstone Harbour reserve. From left: Bob Chapman, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, Matthew Darbyshire and Daniel Hallam, MMO, Alec Taylor (me!), Wez Smith and Ali Giacomelli, RSPB. Photo: RSPB