The Dee Estuary and Burry Inlet cockle fishery won the Ocean Leadership award at the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) UK annual awards for its exemplary leadership and unique contribution in furthering the sustainability of fisheries. Burry Inlet, in Carmarthen Bay, Wales, became the world’s first MSC certified bivalve mollusc fishery in 2001 and was followed […]
The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Act 2023 now come into force making it a criminal offence to supply or offer to supply (including for free) certain single-use plastic products to consumers in Wales. The purpose of the new law is to reduce the flow of plastic pollution into the environment by prohibiting the […]
Following the installation of an Advanced Mooring System in Cawsand Bay four years ago, in a joint project by the Ocean Conservation Trust and Marine Conservation Society there has been a 212% increase in seagrass cover. Traditional anchoring and mooring systems cause damage to delicate seagrass habitats, as the chain drags along the seabed disturbing […]
A report summarising the results of a choice experiment survey that was designed to capture the preferences of Scottish people towards the management of marine and coastal areas in Scotland has been published by the Scottish Government. The study was carried out to improve understanding of the economic value people place on key environmental and […]
Scotland’s west coast seas are a vitally important area for minke whales – with some of these spectacular but vulnerable marine mammals notching up Europe’s longest sighting histories of almost 30 years, research by the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust, shows. A newly published digital catalogue bringing together photographic identification records submitted by members of […]
The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is now commencing the roll-out phase of inshore vessel monitoring system (I-VMS) devices to under six metre vessels. This phase continues the MMO’s support for all under 12 metre vessels to enable them to meet the requirements to have an I-VMS device once legislation comes into force early 2024. Fishers […]
A major international conference on the Antarctic marine environment has failed to agree on new conservation areas despite hearing evidence the southern continent is facing a range of crises, including historically low sea ice levels, plummeting wildlife numbers and the first cases of bird flu. Longstanding proposals to create nearly 4m sq km of marine […]
Under normal conditions, the floating macroalgae Sargassum spp. provide habitat for hundreds of types of organisms. However, the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt (GASB) that emerged in 2011 has since then caused unprecedented inundations of this brown seaweed on Caribbean coastlines, with harmful effects on ecosystems while posing challenges to regional economies and tourism, and concerns […]