Irish Sea Pilot
Regional Seas pilot scheme to test recommendations identified by the interim report of the Review of Marine Nature Conservation Working Group
The Irish Sea Pilot has now been competed and has presented its results to the Review of Marine Nature Conservation Working Group.
The full report is available on the JNCC website, a synopsis of the report
is below.
www.jncc.gov.uk.
Executive summary
Introduction to the Irish Sea Pilot
The purpose of the Irish Sea Pilot was to help develop a strategy for marine nature conservation that could be applied to all UK waters and, with international collaboration, the adjacent waters of the north-east Atlantic. The work fulfils a commitment made by the UK Government in May 2002, at the launch of Safeguarding our Seas, and trials ideas developed as part of the Review of Marine Nature Conservation. The Pilot was funded primarily by Defra with contributions from other partners.
Aims and objectives of the Pilot
One of the aims of the Irish Sea Pilot was to test the proposed framework for marine nature conservation, developed by the Review of Marine Nature Conservation Working Group. The framework was developed to demonstrate that action needed to be taken at a range of scales. These scales were i) the Wider Sea ii) the Regional Sea iii) Marine Landscapes and iv) Nationally-important habitats and species. The proposed framework anticipated that a range of measures would be needed to conserve marine biodiversity, including protected areas, spatial planning and other measures. The Pilot was designed to test the practicality and potential method of operation for the proposed framework and the additional measures needed to put it into effect.
The objectives of the Pilot scheme were to investigate a number of key areas and to involve stakeholders in the process.
- Test ways of integrating nature conservation into key sectors in order to make an effective contribution to sustainable development on a regional basis;
- Test the framework proposed by the paper "An implementation framework for the conservation, protection and management of nationally important marine wildlife in the UK" (known as "the Implementation Framework"
- Determine the potential of existing regulatory and other systems for delivering effective marine nature conservation, and identify and gaps
- Recommend measures to fill the gaps identified.
Results of the Irish Sea Pilot
The results of the Pilot study have been published. The report Marine Nature Conservation and Sustainable Development - The Irish Sea Pilot - Report to Defra by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee is available on the JNCC website.
Link to website and full report: http://www.jncc.gov.uk
Results of each key area studied by the Pilot
The Project was overseen by a Steering Group which convened to monitor the projects achievements and progress at meeting milestones. All tasks were completed to agreed standards and deadlines. Results of the Pilot in the Irish Sea have been published. A synopsis of the main areas investigated and conclusions drawn are listed below:
Data and Information. The Pilot collated geophysical, hydrographical, nature conservation, ecological and human use data and used GIS analysis. While intertidal and near-coast biological information was found to be satisfactory, data were sparse for most offshore localities to a degree which would constrain good decision-making. Furthermore, some survey data were not available to the Pilot, either because they were held in an inappropriate format or because the data owner was unable or unwilling to release it.
Marine Landscapes. The Pilot tested the concept of 'Marine Landscapes' which is based on using geophysical and hydrographical data to identify habitat types in the absence of biological data. If reliable, such an approach would enable management measures for offshore areas to be developed with confidence in the absence of biological data, which is very expensive to obtain in offshore areas. The Pilot successfully applied this approach to the Irish Sea, identifying and mapping 18 coastal and seabed marine landscape types, and 4 water column marine landscape types.
Nationally-important marine features. A draft set of criteria for the identification of nationally-important marine landscapes, habitats and species was tested. A recommendation was made that further work should be undertaken to determine which marine nationally-important features would benefit from specific Action Plans.
Nationally-important marine areas. The Pilot investigated the concept of ecologically-coherent networks of important marine areas as envisaged under the EC Habitats Directive and under OSPAR, tested draft criteria for the identification of important marine areas, and investigated a range of methods to develop a network of areas for the Irish Sea.
The Pilot also investigated means of identifying and conserving important marine geological and geomorphological areas, an aspect previously little considered in the UK or internationally.
Conservation objectives. Building on the vision and strategic goals set out in Safeguarding our Seas and in Seas of Change, a generic series of high level conservation objectives and operational conservation objectives applicable to national waters was formulated.
Overarching Measures required. Mechanisms by which the Regional Sea could be managed to achieve the conservation objectives at the various scales of the proposed framework for marine nature conservation were considered, in relation to current measures and legislation.
Enforcement and Governance. The Pilot reviewed existing enforcement measures and governance systems as they affect marine nature conservation.
International working. While the foregoing conclusions are intended to apply directly to the United Kingdom, one of the main conclusions of the Pilot was the importance of working closely with international Government partners and stakeholders. This will be crucial in the effective future management of the national seas and adjacent waters.
References to other related research papers
The Irish Sea Pilot report includes advice from 23 separate commissioned studies. Further reports will be developed by the JNCC:
- Communications with stakeholders
- Data collation and mapping
- Classification of marine landscapes
- The identification of nationally-important habitats, species and areas
- The development of conservation objectives
- Marine legislation and enforcement
- Applying spatial planning to the marine environment
All reports are available on the JNCC website: www.jncc.gov.uk
Review of Marine Nature Conservation
The report prepared by the Irish Sea Pilot team was submitted to the
RMNC Working Group. The results and findings have helped inform the Working
Group, who have just reported the findings on their five year review.
The Review of Marine Nature Conservation - Working Group report to Government
was published 26 July 2004.
http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/ewd/rmnc/index.htm
For further information email: marinebiodiversity@defra.gsi.gov.uk
Page published: 6 August 2004