Marine Conservation Society launches Marine Charter to lobby for more MCZs
The Marine Conservation Society has launched a Marine Charter, which is asking people to lobby their Member of Parliament to secure improvement in the UK, Scottish and Welsh government designated network of Marine Conservation Zones.
The Marine Charter reads:
“Our seas and their amazing wildlife need better protection.
We’re working with NGOs, through Wildlife and Countryside Link, to ask politicians to sign the Marine Protected Area Charter.
The Marine Charter calls for the swift designation of a well-managed network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in UK seas by 2016. These are areas of the sea that should be protected from damaging activities like trawling and dredging, and will protect a wide range of habitats and wildlife.
Over 100 MPs and 20 Peers have signed up so far. Their support will put pressure on this and future Governments to complete the MPA network in England and offshore Wales. But we’d like even more MPs to sign the Charter. Write to your MP today and ask them to sign up to the Marine Charter.”
To access this facility, click here .
The Marine Conservation Society further advises on its website:
Progress on a UK MPA network:
After a 10 year campaign we secured the UK, Scottish and N.Ireland Marine Acts, which included commitments to designate Marine Conservation Zones around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and MPAs around Scotland. Scotland is progressing well, with 30 MPAs now designated to add to the existing European sites, and four more MPAs to be consulted on in 2015, though there will still be gaps. England has designated 27 MCZsMCZ Marine Conservation Zone, but we still need at least two more tranches of MCZs to achieve an ecologically coherent network. Wales is reviewing its network which primarily consists of European Marine Sites, and Northern Ireland is considering search areas for its network.
Marine Conservation Zones in English Seas:
Following our 10 year campaign for the UK Marine Act 2009, the first tranche of 27 Marine Conservation Zones were at designated in November 2013. We now need two further tranches of MCZs in the next Parliament. Please email your MP for now and please check back to this site in January 2015 when Government launches their public consultation on its second tranche of 37 sites, as we’ll need you to respond.
To view full details of each of the proposed phase two sites visit the MCS website.
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1 Fulmar
2 Farnes East
3 Coquet to St Mary’s
4 Runswick Bay / Boulby
5 Compass Rose
6 Holderness Inshore
7 Cromer Shoalshoal A sandbank or sandbar that makes the water shallow Chalk Beds
8 The Swale Estuary
9 Dover to Deal
10 Dover to Folkestone
11 Offshore Brighton
12 Offshore Overfalls
13 Utopia
14 Bembridge
15 Norris to Ryde
16 Yarmouth to Cowes
17 The Needles
18 Studland Bay
19 Western Channel
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20 Mounts Bay
21 Land’s End
22 Newquay and The Gannel
23 Hartland Point to Tintagel
24 Bideford to Foreland Point
25 North of Lundy (Atlantic Array Area)
26 North-West of Jones Bank
27 Greater Haig Fras
28 South of Celtic Deep
29 Celtic Deep
30 East of Celtic Deep
31 Mid St George’s Channel
32 North St George’s Channel
33 West of Walney co-location zone
34 Slieve Na Griddle
35 Mud Hole
36 South Rigg
37 Allonby Bay
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