Planning Scotland’s Seas 2013 Possible Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas Consultation Overview Planning Scotland’s Seas 2013 Possible Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas Consultation Overview The Scottish Government, Edinburgh 2013 © Crown copyright 2013 You may re-use this information (excluding logos and images) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ or e-mail: [email protected]. Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. This document is also available from our website at www.scotland.gov.uk. ISBN: 978-1-78256-764-6 The Scottish Government St Andrew’s House Edinburgh EH1 3DG Produced for the Scottish Government by APS Group Scotland DPPAS14502 (07/13) Published by the Scottish Government, July 2013 Ministerial Foreword We are at a monumental point in the history of Scotland‟s seas. This consultation provides everyone with an interest in our marine environment to help us develop a network of Marine Protected Areas to ensure that our marine ecosystems are resilient and can continue to support our society‟s needs for generations to come. At the same time we are also consulting on the draft National Marine Plan, draft sectoral marine plans for offshore renewable energy and priority marine features. Protecting rare, representative and productive species and habitats on the basis of sound science means we can keep on getting these benefits and enjoying the rich diversity of life in the waters around us. Scotland‟s seas are extraordinary, and we are only just starting to get to know what is in them and how much we rely on them. Our seas provide nurseries and feeding grounds for species that are critical to the marine ecosystem including fish species that we rely upon for food. Kelp and seagrass forests and offshore reefs help reduce the impacts of storms by acting as a physical buffer. Healthy seas also assist in protecting us from climate change. So it is important not just to protect rare, threatened, declining, or nationally representative species and habitats for their own sake, but also for these benefits we take for granted. Before 2007 control of our seas did not extend further than 12 nautical miles, nor did we have community-led protected areas. Since 2007 we taken on lead responsibility for offshore conservation and Special Areas of Conservation in Scottish offshore waters have been designated, one of which is the largest in Europe. We have also been able to protect important marine habitats for seabirds and designate our only inshore Lophelia cold water coral reef as a Special Area of Conservation. The Marine (Scotland) Act and Marine and Coastal Access Act delivered new powers to protect other habitats and species of national and international importance through the designation of Marine Protected Areas. Our aim is to achieve a well-managed network of Marine Protected Areas by 2016. You can help by providing your views on the case for designation of the possible Nature Conservation MPAs included in this consultation. We are also seeking views on other aspects of the proposals including management options to protect the features. Finally I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who has been involved in the last two years to get to where we are today. Richard Lochhead MSP Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Environment Contents with links to headings Page Summary of the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) Network Proposals 1 Summary of the Consultation Questions 3 What is a Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network? 8 Why do we need Marine Protected Areas? 9 What else can MPAs do? 11 Overview of the evolving MPA network 13 The MPA Consultation 14 MPAs in the wider context and the process of identification 19 Roles and Responsibilities 21 The Sustainability Appraisal 22 How will the network be managed 25 Principle of Best Available Evidence 27 Stakeholder Engagement 28 How the existing network protects Scotland’s marine life 30 Historic MPAs 33 Appendix A: Summaries of the Possible Nature Conservation MPAs 34 Appendix B: The features of the Possible Nature Conservation MPAs 68 Appendix C: How to Respond 74 Appendix D: Consultation Questions 77 Appendix E: Respondent Information Form 94 Figures 1 &6: Possible Nature Conservation MPAs & search locations 7& in Scotland’s seas 72 Figure 2: The 4 areas that have yet to be fully assessed against the 18 MPA Selection Guidelines and remain as MPA search locations Figure 3: Map of Third-Party MPA proposals 29 Figure 4: Existing protected areas and other area-based measures 32 contributing to the protection of Scotland’s marine environment Figure 5: Identifying Historic MPAs – Locations of existing 33 designated wrecks and underwater scheduled monuments Table 1: Possible Nature conservation MPAs and MPA search 6 locations in Scottish waters Table 2: Present value (PV) in £ millions for national cost impacts to 23 human activities Planning Scotland’s Seas - Summary of the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)Network Proposals Thank you for taking the time to consider this consultation paper. We would welcome your views on the development of the network of Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas for Scottish waters. Possible Nature Conservation MPAs (pMPAs) have now been developed (see Figure 1 and Table 1, and in more detail in Appendices A & B) and a further 4 MPA search locations remain to be fully assessed. These 4 search locations will be assessed next year in 2014 when SNH have gathered the relevant evidence to support their designation. The MPA consultation would like to invite views on: 1. the case to develop a network of MPAs; 2. the case for designation for each of the pMPAs; 3. preferred management options for each of the pMPAs; 4. preferences with regards to science based alternatives; 5. preferences with regards to ecologically equivalent options; 6. the potential environmental and socio-economic impacts of individual MPAs; 7. the potential environmental and socio-economic impacts of the MPA network; 8. whether the addition of these pMPAs, plus the 4 search locations, to existing protected areas constitute an ecologically coherent network. What documents should I read to answer the questions? In addition to this overview, which includes summaries of each pMPA, the MPA consultation consists of the following documents which provide further detail on the pMPAs, the evidence supporting them, potential management options, as well as possible environmental and socioeconomic costs and benefits. For each of the pMPAs SNH1 and JNCC2 have produced: A Site Summary Document A Data Confidence Assessment (which sets out the scientific evidence) A Detailed assessment of the MPA through the MPA Selection Guidelines A set of management options in relation to each relevant activity. Marine Scotland3 have also produced: A set of Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments (BRIAs) that cover the pMPAs And a Sustainability Appraisal of the network as a whole, combining environmental and social economic impacts A Management Handbook which describes the processes of how the network will be managed in greater detail. 1www.snh.gov.uk/mpa-consultation 2www.jncc.defra.gov.uk/scottish-mpa-consultation 3www.scotland.gov.uk/marineconsultation 1 For more information on existing protected areas please refer to the Report to the Scottish Parliament on Progress to identify a Scottish Network of Marine Protected Areas, or for full details please refer to Scottish Natural Heritage and Joint Nature Conservation Committee‟s comprehensive Advice to the Scottish Government on the Selection of Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) for the Development of the Scottish MPA Network. For more details of how the possible Nature Conservation MPAs and MPA search locations interact with current protected areas please visit NMPi (National Marine Plan Interactive). The downloadable GIS data on MPAs in the NMPi is open access and subject to Ordinance Survey license agreements. How do I respond and get involved in the consultation? We are inviting views on individual pMPAs, their possible impacts and management, as well as on the overall network, on the Marine Scotland website: www.scotland.gov.uk/marineconsultation Further details on how to respond can be found in Appendix C and the Consultation Response forms can be found in Appendices D& E and at the above address. A summary of the questions follow on the next page. Thank you for taking the time to respond. Grey seal pup ©Richard Shucksmith Fireworks anemone ©Richard Shucksmith 2 Summary of the Questions for your response in Appendix D at the end of this document 1. Do you support the development of an MPA network in Scotland‟s Seas? Individual possible Nature Conservation MPAs 2. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the Clyde Sea Sill possible Nature Conservation MPA? 3. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the East Caithness Cliffs possible Nature Conservation MPA? 4. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the East of Gannet and Montrose Fields possible Nature Conservation MPA? 5. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the Faroe-Shetland sponge belt possible Nature Conservation MPA? 6. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the Fetlar to Haroldswick possible Nature Conservation MPA? 7. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the Hatton-Rockall Basin possible Nature Conservation MPA? 8. Do you have any comments on the case for designation, management options and socioeconomic assessment for the Loch Creran possible Nature Conservation MPA? 9.