Tag: Scottish Government

Protecting flame shell reefs in Loch Carron and beyond

26 May 2017

You might have heard about recent events at Loch Carron. Back in April there were reports that scallop dredging, a form of fishing that pulls heavy toothed metal rakes and chain bags along the seabed, had damaged a flame-shell reef in outer Loch Carron.

Protecting our offshore and deep sea habitats – How should Scotland manage its offshore MPAs?  

27 Oct 2016

Scotland’s offshore waters are far out, but we don’t want them to be out of mind. They are home to ancient, vulnerable deepwater coral reefs and sponges, ghostly fields of tall sea pen, unusual methane-seeps, aggregations of ocean quahog – among the oldest living things on the planet. They provide habitat for keystone species such […]

A deep, blue hole? Navigating the implications of Brexit for Scotland’s marine environment

02 Aug 2016

There are a lot of heads swimming right now, as Brexit puts the proverbial shark amongst the mackerel. ‘Leaving the EU’ (whatever that actually ends up meaning in the evolving, devolving politics of the UK) does in theory have very significant implications for the management of our seas. Perhaps more than any other policy sphere […]

Don’t take the P out of MPAs

11 Nov 2014

Members of this campaign are deeply concerned that potential new management measures for Marine Protected Areas – announced this week – risk failing to protect and recover the very sea life which MPAs have been set up to protect. We are now launching a joint campaign urging the people of Scotland to tell the Scottish Government: ‘Don’t take […]

Scotland’s seas and the first ’emergency MCO’: what have we learnt?

01 Oct 2014

Today, the first ever Marine Conservation Order (MCO) was approved by the Scottish Parliament. The MCO – approved via a short-notice emergency procedure initiated by Marine Scotland, excludes all forms of fishing – and indeed any activity that could damage the seabed – in three areas near to the southern shores of the Isle of Arran. As many will know, […]

Earth (and sea) Hour

26 Mar 2014

For the past seven years, WWF has spread the worrying word about climate change by encouraging people around the world to reduce the energy consumption and take practical action for one hour by turning off their lights. Hopefully one day, all diaries, calendars and year-planners on the planet will have Earth Hour inked into the […]

Fair Isle community calls for MPA

11 Mar 2013

The people of Fair Isle are calling for better protection of their local marine environment. Nick Riddiford, chair of the Fair Isle Marine Environment and Tourism Initiative explains why a Marine Protected Area would help safeguard their sea, and their community. For the last 24 years the Fair Isle community, concerned at steady and unremitting […]

36,000 support MPAs for whales and dolphins

18 Dec 2012

WDC has handed over a huge 36,736 signatures from members of the public to Richard Lochhead, Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Environment, asking the Scottish Government to include whales and dolphins in Scotland’s new marine protected area network. The handover of the signatures at the Scottish parliament by WDC’s head of policy in […]

MPA proposals signal move towards recovery

14 Dec 2012

Plans announced today (14th December 2012) for 33 nature conservation Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been welcomed by a coalition of Scotland’s environmental groups as an important step towards the much-needed recovery of Scotland’s seas. Scottish Environment LINK’s marine taskforce contends that a network of Marine Protected Areas cannot afford to simply protect what’s left […]

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