07 Oct 2025
Photo by Brad Lewis Scotland has introduced new fisheries management measures across 20 offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The Offshore Fishing (Prohibition of Fishing Methods) (Scotland) Order 2025 was laid before the Scottish Parliament on 12 September and is scheduled to come into force on 16 October 2025. The legislation introduces site-specific restrictions on fishing methods […]
29 Apr 2025
A new Official Statistic in Development has been released by JNCC that will track the status of threatened and declining marine habitats and species within the UK. This new indicator provides, for the first time, a comprehensive overview of threatened and declining marine habitats and species in the UK. The statistic has been […]
25 Jan 2025
The government has ordered offshore energy firms to avoid “noisy” detonations when disposing of unexploded bombs on the seabed. Over 300,000 pieces of unexploded ordnance from the First and Second World Wars sit on the UK seabed and, if encountered, must be cleared during the construction of offshore wind projects. Marine minister Emma Hardy said […]
27 Aug 2024
JNCC, Natural Resources Wales, Natural England, NatureScot and Northern Ireland Environment Agency, have published A Joint Statement on Improving the Approach to Protected Areas in the UK. The five organisations released the following information to coincide with the publication: Protected Areas are a key conservation tool in halting and reversing the decline in nature in a […]
30 Jul 2024
A recently published study, commissioned by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) investigates the suitability of existing Cumulative Effects Assessment (CEA) methods relative to the requirement to adopt a standardised approach to CEA in support of marine plan development. The report concludes with a set of recommendations for carrying out CEAs at a marine plan-level […]
21 May 2024
A new report sheds light on the future impacts of climate change on marine species across the United Kingdom. Focussing on 21 marine species listed as ‘threatened’ or ‘declining’, ranging from sharks and rays to seahorses and oysters, predictive models were used to forecast the impacts of climate change on ‘habitat suitability’. Factors such as […]
21 Nov 2023
A new census covering over 10,000 sites reveals 11 of 25 seabird species that breed in Britain, Ireland, Isle of Man and the Channel Isles have declined over the past 20 years. Britain and Ireland hold most of the world’s nesting Manx shearwaters, northern gannets and great skuas. The islands are also a vital stronghold for other […]
24 Nov 2022
UK Nature agencies set out roadmap to protect nature to underpin food security, climate security and water security. In a joint statement the UK’s six official nature conservation bodies said that there has never been a more critical time to invest in restoring and enhancing nature across the UK and stressed how the economy cannot […]
