22 Feb 2022

About 500 barrels of oil has leaked from a pipe off the north Wales coast. The pipe, which runs between two platforms named Conwy and Douglas, was shut off following the leak on Monday and remains closed. Operator ENI UK said details of what happened about 20 miles (33km) north of Rhyl, Denbighshire, were still […]

22 Feb 2022

Defra have announced £1.4m of funding delivered to projects supporting sustainable fishing and fisheries science across the UK. Eight innovative new projects that will support the UK’s fishing industry to be more productive and sustainable have been awarded a share of £1.4 million. The funding is the first part of the £24 million earmarked from the £100 million […]

22 Feb 2022

It was ‘World Whale Day’ on 20th February and there were several stories which grabbed the headlines. Firstly, from WWF, a ‘world-first map exposes growing dangers along whale superhighways’. A new report from WWF and partners provides the first truly comprehensive look at whale migrations and the threats they face across all oceans, highlighting how […]

22 Feb 2022

For the past two weeks we have covered the news of the outcome of the investigation into the deaths of crabs and lobster in the North East of England. The BBC now reports that the government is investigating after new accounts of dead crabs and lobsters along the North East coast. Defra is to “undertake additional […]

22 Feb 2022

Welsh fishing boats to have monitoring devices. Wales has become the first nation in the UK to require all of its licensed commercial fishing boats are fitted with a Vessel Monitoring System (VMS). Boats 12m or more in length were already required to have such a system in place, but an Order coming into force […]

22 Feb 2022

The MMO has recently updated the information on impact assessment requirements for marine licence applications. Marine Plan Policy Assessment section updated to show changes coming to the system from April 2022. From April 2022 the marine plan policy section will be replaced with smart functionality that identifies all marine plan policies relevant to your proposal. […]

15 Feb 2022

The development of a new global finance ecosystem designed to channel finance into coastal and ocean natural capital by 2030 is underway, it was announced at the One Ocean Summit hosted by France.  The initiative, led by the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA), has convened representatives from the private sector, governments and NGOs to advance […]

15 Feb 2022

The Prime Minister has announced that the UK will be joining the High Ambition Coalition on Biodiversity beyond National Jurisdiction. The PM gave a video message at the One Ocean Summit, held in France from  9 to 11 February 2022. The UK joined the 27 EU Member States, Australia, Egypt, Norway and others in committing […]