Marine Conservation Zones coming soon to south-west England

Member Joined: Dec 02, 2009 Posts: 7

The Marine and Coastal Access Act introduces a new national designation for marine protection - Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs). MCZs must be identified and designated in the seas around England, to help create a coherent network of marine protected areas by 2012. New Marine Conservation Zones and existing designations: European Marine Sites, Marine Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest, will make up the network of marine protected areas.

No Marine Conservation Zones have been proposed yet but sea angling is one the activities that could be restricted in certain ways by MCZs. For example, some sites may become no-take zones in order to meet conservation targets, therefore it is important that you know how you can influence these decisions now, before they have been made.

Four projects have been set up around England to work with sea anglers and other sea users to decide where these zones should go and what level of protection they should have. These projects are: Finding Sanctuary in the south-west, Balanced Seas in the south-east, Net Gain for the North Sea and Irish Sea Conservation Zones for the Irish Sea.

Sea angling is recognised as an important activity in the south-west and with a detailed knowledge of local marks and fish ecology, sea anglers will play a vital role in developing ideas for MCZs, ensuring they protect key areas such as spawning and nursery grounds.

In the south-west, Finding Sanctuary has brought together sea anglers, divers, commercial fishermen, sailors, conservationists, scientists and many other marine stakeholders on its Steering Group. The Steering Group is responsible for drawing the lines on maps – deciding where MCZs should be placed and what level of protection they should have. The level of protection given to each MCZ will be decided on a case by case basis. The Steering Group will make its recommendations to Government in June 2011 and the final decision lies with the Ministers.

We have several liaison officers collecting information from sea anglers about which areas of sea they use, so that we can create a map of sea angling activity around the south-west. Accurate information about where sea angling takes place in the region is essential, as this is the information that the sea angling representatives on the Steering Group will use to stand up for your interests during the negotiations, with the aim of minimising the impact of MCZs on your activity. The sea angling representatives on the Finding Sanctuary Steering Group are Peter MacConnell (B.A.S.S. & Angling Trust), Mike Bailey (Brixham Angling Club) and Paul Taylor (Cornish Federation of Sea Anglers). We want to work with you to ensure we get the best result for everyone involved, but if we don’t know which areas are important to you, Peter, Mike and Paul can’t try to avoid them when planning MCZs.

There are three ways you can get involved to have your say:
1. Visit our Interactive Map
2. Call Finding Sanctuary on 01392 878 340 and arrange to meet your nearest liaison officer who will help you to map the areas which are important to you.
3. Join us at one of our drop in days around the south-west over the next few months for more information, to ask questions or record the sea areas you use on our maps. New dates and venues for drop in days are being added frequently and are detailed on the News section of our website.

We will try to check back here from time to time, but if you have any questions, suggestions or concerns please get in touch with us directly.

South-west
Finding Sanctuary
Email: info@finding-sanctuary.org
Tel: 01392 878 340

If you fish in other parts of the country get in touch with your nearest project.

South-east
Balanced Seas
Email: balancedseas@kent.ac.uk
Tel: 01227 827 839

North Sea
Net Gain
Email: dani@yhsg.co.uk
Tel: 01482 382 007

Irish Sea
Irish Sea Conservation Zones
Email: info@irishseaconservation.org.uk
Tel: 01925 813 200

Member Joined: Dec 02, 2009 Posts: 7

If you use the sea in the south-west, we want to hear from you. Come along to one of the Finding Sanctuary drop-in days to find out how new Marine Conservation Zones could affect you and how you can get involved. Dates for the new year are already being added, just come along at any time during the day.

Weymouth Drop-in Day
Monday 11th January 2010, 10am – 8pm
The Gallery, Weymouth Library, Great George Street, Dorset, DT4 8NN

Falmouth Drop-in Day
Wednesday 27th January 2010, 10am - 8pm
National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Discovery Quay, Falmouth, Cornwall, TR11 3QY

A drop-in day in Plymouth is also being planned for January, details to follow soon.

To find out more call Sarah McLintock on 01392 878 340/07544 590294, email her at sarah.mclintock@southwestfoodanddrink.com or visit our website.

Don’t forget, if you can’t make it to one of our drop-in days, you could always map the areas of sea you use on our Interactive Map online. If you use the sea in other parts of England, contact your nearest project: South-east - Balanced Seas, North Sea - Net Gain and Irish Sea - Irish Sea Conservation Zones. If you are not sure which regional project you fall under, take a look at our map.

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 10:47 am

out of interest what research do you have to show rod and line fisherman are contributing to a decline of species

Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Posts: 1 Location: Torpoint, Cornwall.

Hi All,
Anybody going to the "drop in day" next Tuesday I think?
Tedward.

Member Joined: Sep 06, 2009 Posts: 45

As many people as possible need to get along to these meetings and air their views. Whether our opinions will be heard and/or listened to is another matter.

Whilst I accept that protection zones may be needed along the same lines as we already have Conservation areas for other native wild-life I don't believe anglers, and beach fisherman in particular, have any great impact on any species. I base this opinion on the fact that even if you fish with 2 rods you are hardly likely to catch as many fish in a 4/5 hour session than the netters do in the same period of time.

If 'Finding Sanctuary' want my support then they can earn it by stopping the trawlers that came in to Whitsand Bay and destroyed the Bass run there, they can stop the Trawlers raping the beaches at Beesands and Slapton and they can stop the netters from laying their nets within 100 yards of Mountbatten Breakwater, Jennicliffe Beach and hopes Nose.

Come to some of the beaches I fish and watch the trawler lights come inwhen darkness falls and the Fisherie Protection ladds are tucked up in bed.

Member Joined: Dec 02, 2009 Posts: 7

spunky wrote:

out of interest what research do you have to show rod and line fisherman are contributing to a decline of species

Thanks for your post and sorry for taking so long to respond. We post on over 100 forums and I only saw your message when we revisited sea-fishing.org last week and I needed to consult others in order to answer your question.

Government advisors (JNCC and Natural England) will be issuing the regional project stakeholder groups with ecological guidance which will set out which species and habitats need to be protected through Marine Conservation Zones, and what the conservation objectives are for each species and habitat. The Government advisors will also provide guidance on the levels of human pressures that are likely to be compatible with each conservation objective. For example, a biogenic reef is sensitive to high levels of physical abrasion. Several human activities can cause high levels of physical abrasion (trawling, for instance) and these activities would have to be managed if the conservation objective is to be achieved.

Compatibility depends on the many site specific elements (e.g. the intensity and frequency of pressures, mitigation measures, time of year activity occurs, cumulative effects of different pressures as well as the sensitivity of the feature and its current condition.

JNCC currently have two data contracts let, MB106 (pressures on marine environment) and MB102 (collating sensitivity information on EUNIS level 3 habitats and species of particular conservation importance). The main objective is to combine sensitivity and exposure to pressures information to give an indication of the impacts on specific features, for the identification of marine protected areas. I do not know when these will be completed or when the results will be made available.

I therefore spoke to a colleague at the JNCC who told me the following: Hand lining is an activity that can cause biological pressure on an ecosystem by selectively removing particularly species. Some activities cause more than one pressure (e.g. trawling causes both biological and physical pressures). However, a pressure is not the same as an impact - impacts occur where the feature is sensitive to a particular pressure, and where a change occurs that is different to that expected under natural conditions. In the case of hand lining, this could be a reduction in the population of the target species, and potentially a change in community structure and marine food webs. If hand lining is regulated so that the impact/change is minor, then this is likely to be compatible with the conservation objectives of an MPA (where the target species is a qualifying feature or where this species is considered an integral part of a qualifying habitat). Obviously, in a reference site, no extraction, deposition or disturbance will be allowed, as you correctly identify below.

In order to meet the ecological guidance, the Finding Sanctuary Steering Group may recommend that some MCZs are given a high level of protection, which could ban all extraction, disturbance and deposition, including take by rod and line fishermen. For example, some reference sites may be set up to monitor the effects of removing all human pressures. Any highly protected site could have an impact on rod and line fishermen, so it is important that you and other fishermen are involved in deciding where these sites should be placed, in order to minimise any impact to your fishing. I would suggest you get in touch with us directly to find out who is representing your interests on the Steering Group and how you can get involved as an individual. You can call us on 01392 878 328.

I hope this helps answer your question. Please get in touch if you have any further questions.

Thanks,
Joana

Member Joined: Dec 02, 2009 Posts: 7

If you use the sea in the south-west, we want to hear from you. It is your opportunity to speak to Finding Sanctuary staff about new Marine Conservation Zones, how they could affect you and how you can get involved. Dates have been organised for February and March around the south west, so come along at any time during the day to your nearest venue.

Bude Drop-in Day
Thursday 25th February 2010, 10am – 8pm
Bude Tourist Information Centre, Crescent Car Park, Bude, Cornwall, EX23 8LE

Newlyn/Penzance Drop-in Day
Monday 1st March 2010, 10am – 8pm
Fishermen’s Mission, Ship Institute, North Pier, Newlyn, Penzance, Cornwall, TR18 5JB

Poole Drop-in Day
Thursday 18th March 2010, 10am – 8pm
The Lifeboat College, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1HZ

Bristol Drop-in Day
Tuesday 23rd March 2010, 10am – 8pm
The Kings Arms, 168 Whiteladies Road, Bristol, BS8 2XZ

To find out more call Sarah McLintock on 01392 878 340/07544 590294, email her at sarah@finding-sanctuary.org or look at our website.

Don’t forget, if you can’t make it to one of our drop-in days, you could always map the areas of sea you use on our Interactive Map online.

If you use the sea in other parts of England, contact your nearest project:
South-east - Balanced Seas
North Sea - Net Gain
Irish Sea - Irish Sea Conservation Zones.

If you are not sure which regional project you fall under, take a look at our map.

Member Joined: Sep 06, 2009 Posts: 45

What a waste of time!

Finding Sanctuary? Christ, you couldn't find you way back to this website for over 8 weeks!

You say you post on over a 100 websites, how hard could it be to go to each one and see any comments left for you? I dont mean daily, but once a week would mean visiting 20 a day, hardly a difficult task.

As to drawing lines on a map, that is all very well and if you use different colours to represent different protection criteria I am sure it will look very pretty on a wall. However, as the final decision, by your own admission, will depend on Ministers what we want will be rather irrelevant as it will be a political decision based on poll ratings at the time.

If you feel this is a personal dig at you then I appologise because it is not meant to be, publish your "research" to show percentages of fish caught by trawlers, netters and then us rod and line anglers and I am sure you will see we contribute very little, if anything to the decline of species.

By all means put a line on the map and protect the fish in that area, what will happen then? You must have had the same thought as I have had, the trawlers and the netters will trawl and net harder just on the other side of the line thereby destroying that area. Then you can relay your lines and the trawlers will move again.

Why not create an exclusion zone similar to our territorial waters although maybe only 10 miles or so and ban all commercial fishing within that area?

I look forward to your response to this post and will check back in Aprilto see your response, if any.

Member Joined: Feb 21, 2010 Posts: 6

Well said TMD

I'm new here but am going to their drop in this week so will let you know if they have any Face to Face answers

Plenty of trawlers near our beach's down here at night and they think "we" have an effect on the fish population !!!

It sickens me to see tons o fish come out in one haul and then quota and size issues see the trawler dump surplus now dead back into sea

Also the huge euro trawlers that eat up all in their path and destroy our own fishing fleets

There is a place for our trawlers, our line fishermen and us, this is where the debate should be in giving us all a place in our waters

I will let you know how I get on

Cheers
big hug

Regular Joined: Jul 26, 2009 Posts: 343 Location: Surrey

Rather than dismiss these conservation zones as worthless or assuming sea fishing won't get a look in, we should make sure our views are put forward at whatever forums are available. Clearly commercial fishing will have a much greater impact than angling, but that doesn't mean to say angling has no impact at all. In the end these conservation measures are far more likely to benefit sea anglers; we just need to ensure that the people who make policy properly understand the relative impacts.

Member Joined: Sep 06, 2009 Posts: 45

Iknowagoodplaice wrote:

Rather than dismiss these conservation zones as worthless or assuming sea fishing won't get a look in, we should make sure our views are put forward at whatever forums are available. Clearly commercial fishing will have a much greater impact than angling, but that doesn't mean to say angling has no impact at all. In the end these conservation measures are far more likely to benefit sea anglers; we just need to ensure that the people who make policy properly understand the relative impacts.

I dont dismiss them as worthless but the policy will be decided upon by politians who are more interested in lining their own pockets and probably have very little real knowledge of the issues. They will read facts and figures and make their decision on other peoples thoughts.

Figures can be misleading if put in different contexts.