The UK Marine Reserves Campaign aims to ensure that the UK Marine and Coastal Access Bill places a duty on the Secretary of State to establish by 2015 an ecologically coherent network of Highly Protected Marine Reserves covering at least 30% of UK seas out to 200 nautical miles.
The Government published the Marine and Coastal Access Bill on 3 December 2008. This bill provides a golden opportunity to do something to regenerate the collapsing marine ecosystem, and restore the economic viability of our distressed fishing industry. However, in the form that is proposed, the expected recovery will be delayed at least and possibly never materialise at all.
MARINET, the
Friends of the Earth Marine Network, has launched our
UK Marine Reserves Campaign, to work with other organisations to get the duty outlined above included in the Bill. This will only happen if we can mobilise a lot of pressure on MPs and the Government.
Find out more about the campaign.
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10th September, 2009
Marine Reserves Leaflet - Sept 2009
We have created a new leaflet calling on people to contact their MP, urging them to support the soon-to-be-tabled MARINET amendment to the Marine and Coastal Access Bill. This amendment will establish a requirement within the bill to create an ecologically coherent network of Highly Protected Marine Reserves (or Highly Protected “Marine Conservation Zones”, to use the Government terminology).
Click on the picture of the leaflet to the right to access the PDF version and please print as many of these leaflets as you require for distribution. If you prefer, email bill.rigby@marinereserves.org.uk to request copies. The leaflets will also be available at the MARINET stall at the Friends of the Earth conference this weekend, so if you will be there, please come to the stall to collect your copies of the leaflet.
Tags: House of Commons, MARINET
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7th September, 2009
Dr Emma Sheehan talks to John Craven
Last Sunday’s episode of Countryfile, available now on BBC iPlayer, ran a ten-minute feature on the proposals in the Marine Bill for Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs). The segment starts at 21 minutes in to the programme.
John talks to Nicola Saunders, head warden of the Lundy No Take Zone, Melissa Moore of the Marine Conservation Society, Dr Emma Sheehan of the University of Plymouth and scallop fisherman Paul Wayson.
The scale of the problem that MCZs have to tackle was illustrated in Emma Sheehan’s answer to the question “So how long do you reckon it will take before the seabed makes a complete recovery?”
She said: “We don’t know what a complete recovery is because I don’t think we’ve got anywhere close to the UK that isn’t impacted by man so I’ve no idea of what a complete recovery even looks like.”
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25th August, 2009
Mr Sarkozy has made a personal statement which commits France to setting up a network of Highly Protected Marine Reserves on the lines of the MARINET recommendations to our own government. In addition, he has also recognised his duty to act beyond the limits of European waters and include those parts of the sea in the control of French overseas territories. If this same principle were to be adopted in the UK, over three million square kilometres would be included in the scope of protection, in addition to the 0.75m square kilometres of the UK Exclusive Economic Zone in the scope of the Marine Bill.
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Tags: France
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17th August, 2009
The Big Issue in the North published in its edition at the end of July an article about the troubled state of UK seas and the need for the UK Marine Bill to seriously address these matters. This article can be found on the Marinet website.
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Tags: Big Issue, MARINET
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