15 Sep 2026

Photo by AJ Wallace   The Scottish Government has opened a public consultation on proposed fisheries management measures covering more than 160 marine protected areas (MPAs) and priority marine feature (PMF) sites across Scotland’s inshore waters, in what officials have described as one of the most extensive exercises of its kind. The consultation, launched on Monday 14 […]

15 Sep 2026

Photo by Ray Harrington   Brighton Marina’s operator has proposed moving its dredging disposal site to Newhaven from next spring, after losing a legal battle over dumping sediment in a protected marine reserve. Premier Marinas says it intends to apply for a licence to dispose of sand and silt at the site used by Newhaven Harbour, rather […]

15 Sep 2026

Photo by Mapping what Matters   Active and retired skippers and crew across England are being invited to take part in Mapping What Matters, a Defra-led project capturing the cultural and social importance of fishing grounds. Following pilot sessions earlier this year, the project’s national rollout begins with a series of drop-in sessions across the East […]

15 Sep 2026

Photo by Luis Graterol   An international study led by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon has found that marine heatwaves increase the amount of CO₂ absorbed by coastal and shelf seas worldwide, even as the same extreme events weaken carbon uptake in the open ocean. The research, published in Nature Communications, found that CO₂ uptake in coastal and […]

15 Sep 2026

    Photo by Wynand van Poortvliet   Scientists and fishermen are working together to understand a resurgence in Atlantic bluefin tuna numbers that has transformed the species’ prospects in UK waters within a decade. Dr Lucy Hawkes, an ecology professor at the University of Exeter who leads the Thunnus UK tagging project, said the population had […]

08 Sep 2026

Photo by Arnaud Mariat   First Minister John Swinney used the Programme for Government 2026 to 2031, published on 1 September, to confirm plans to fold several of Scotland’s environmental regulators into a single body, prompting swift but carefully worded responses from the organisations affected, and sharper questions from MSPs and unions in the days since. […]

08 Sep 2026

Photo by Tania la Vaullee   The Government of Jersey has significantly expanded its Marine Protected Area (MPA) network, increasing the proportion of territorial waters protected from dredging and trawling from 6.5% to 21.7%, The Fishing Daily reported. The new rules, which took effect on 1 September, mean the area of sea protected from trawling and […]

08 Sep 2026

Photo by Martin Bennie   New research from the University of St Andrews has found that disturbing seabed sediments through trawling could cause significant losses of carbon stored in Scotland’s sea lochs, adding fresh evidence to calls for the Scottish Government to introduce protective measures before its forthcoming consultation on marine protected areas. A vulnerable carbon store […]