Coasts and seas of the United Kingdom Region 4 South-east Scotland: Montrose to Eyemouth edited by J.H. Barne, C.F. Robson, S.S. Kaznowska, J.P. Doody, N.C. Davidson & A.L. Buck Joint Nature Conservation Committee Monkstone House, City Road Peterborough PE1 1JY UK ©JNCC 1997 This volume has been produced by the Coastal Directories Project of the JNCC on behalf of the project Steering Group. JNCC Coastal Directories Project Team Project directors Dr J.P. Doody, Dr N.C. Davidson Project management and co-ordination J.H. Barne, C.F. Robson Editing and publication S.S. Kaznowska, A.L. Buck, R.M. Sumerling Administration & editorial assistance J. Plaza, P.A. Smith, N.M. Stevenson The project receives guidance from a Steering Group which has more than 200 members. More detailed information and advice comes from the members of the Core Steering Group, which is composed as follows: Dr J.M. Baxter Scottish Natural Heritage R.J. Bleakley Department of the Environment, Northern Ireland R. Bradley The Association of Sea Fisheries Committees of England and Wales Dr J.P. Doody Joint Nature Conservation Committee B. Empson Environment Agency C. Gilbert Kent County Council & National Coasts and Estuaries Advisory Group N. Hailey English Nature Dr K. Hiscock Joint Nature Conservation Committee Prof. S.J. Lockwood Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Sciences C.R. Macduff-Duncan Esso UK (on behalf of the UK Offshore Operators Association) Dr D.J. Murison Scottish Office Agriculture, Environment & Fisheries Department Dr H.J. Prosser Welsh Office Dr J.S. Pullen WWF-UK (Worldwide Fund for Nature) Dr P.C. Reid Plymouth Marine Laboratory Dr M.J. Roberts Water Resources and Marine, Department of the Environment S.L. Soffe Countryside Council for Wales M.L. Tasker Joint Nature Conservation Committee R.G. Woolmore Countryside Commission Recommended citation for this volume: Barne, J.H., Robson, C.F., Kaznowska, S.S., Doody, J.P., Davidson, N.C., & Buck, A.L., eds. 1997. Coasts and seas of the United Kingdom. Region 4 South-east Scotland: Montrose to Eyemouth. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee. (Coastal Directories Series.) Recommended citation for a chapter in this volume (example): Davidson, N.C. 1997. Chapter 4.1 Estuaries. In: Coasts and seas of the United Kingdom. Region 4 South-east Scotland: Montrose to Eyemouth, ed. by J.H. Barne, C.F. Robson, S.S. Kaznowska, J.P. Doody, N.C. Davidson & A.L. Buck, 61-64. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee. (Coastal Directories Series.) Region 1: ISBN 1 873701 75 6 Region 10: ISBN 1 873701 84 5 Region 2: ISBN 1 873701 76 4 Region 11: ISBN 1 873701 85 3 Region 3: ISBN 1 873701 77 2 Region 12: ISBN 1 873701 86 1 Region 4: ISBN 1 873701 78 0 Region 13: ISBN 1 873701 87 x Region 5: ISBN 1 873701 79 9 Region 14: ISBN 1 873701 88 8 Region 6: ISBN 1 873701 80 2 Regions 15 & 16: ISBN 1 873701 89 6 Region 7: ISBN 1 873701 81 0 Region 17: ISBN 1 873701 92 6 Region 8: ISBN 1 873701 82 9 Region 9: ISBN 1 873701 83 7 Set of 17 regions: ISBN 1 873701 91 8 2 Contents Foreword 5 How to use this book 6 Acknowledgements 7 Chapter 1 Overview Dr J.P. Doody 9 1.1 The Coastal Directories Project 9 1.2 Introduction to the region 13 Chapter 2 Geology and physical environment 19 2.1 Coastal geology British Geological Survey & J. Sawyer 19 2.2 Offshore geology British Geological Survey & J. Sawyer 23 2.3 Wind and water British Geological Survey, D. Dales & 27 K. Gilbert 2.4 Sediment transport British Geological Survey & Scott Wilson 31 Resource Consultants 2.5 Sea-level rise and flooding British Geological Survey 34 2.6 Coastal landforms Scott Wilson Resource Consultants 36 Chapter 3 Terrestrial coastal habitats 39 3.1 Cliffs and cliff-top vegetation Dr T.C.D. Dargie 39 3.2 Sand dunes Dr T.C.D. Dargie 43 3.3 Vegetated shingle structures and shorelines Dr R.E. Randall 49 3.4 Coastal lagoons Dr R.S.K. Barnes & Dr R.N. Bamber 51 3.5 Wet grassland Dr H.T. Gee 53 3.6 Saltmarsh Dr M.I. Hill 56 Chapter 4 Marine and estuarine environments 61 4.1 Estuaries Dr N.C. Davidson 61 4.2 The sea bed R.A. Irving 65 4.3 Plankton M. Edwards & A.W.G. John 73 Chapter 5 Important species 77 5.1 Terrestrial lower plants N.G. Hodgetts 77 5.2 Flowering plants and ferns V.M. Morgan 81 5.3 Land and freshwater invertebrates A.P. Foster & M.S. Parsons 84 5.4 Rare sea-bed species J. Plaza 88 5.5 Exploited sea-bed species C.F. Robson 91 5.6 Amphibians and reptiles Dr M.J.S. Swan 95 5.7 Fish: exploited sea fish C.F. Robson 100 5.8 Fish: salmon, sea trout and eels C.F. Robson 104 5.9 Fish: other species S.E. Swaby & Dr G.W. Potts 107 5.10 Seabirds M.L. Tasker 110 5.11 Other breeding birds R.T. May & A.B. Law 114 5.12 Migrant and wintering waterfowl R.T. May & A.B. Law 118 5.13 Land mammals Dr C.E. Turtle & K. Meakin 123 5.14 Seals C.D. Duck 126 5.15 Whales, dolphins and porpoises Dr P.G.H. Evans 129 3 Chapter 6 History and archaeology A. Gale & V. Fenwick 133 Chapter 7 Coastal protected sites J. Plaza & R.G. Keddie 143 7.1 Introduction 143 7.2 Sites designated under international conventions and 145 directives 7.3 Sites established under national statute 148 7.4 Sites identified by statutory agencies 152 7.5 Other types of protected site 156 Chapter 8 Land use, infrastructure and coastal defence 159 8.1 Introduction S.J. Everett 159 8.2 Land use S.J. Everett 160 8.3 Infrastructure S.L. Fowler, S.J. Everett 164 & Scott Wilson Resource Consultants 8.4 Coastal defence S.L. Fowler & S.J. Everett 172 Chapter 9 Human activities 177 9.1 Fisheries D. Murison & C.F. Robson 177 9.2 Mariculture C.F. Robson 186 9.3 Quarrying and landfilling S.L. Bell & N.J. Stephenson 189 9.4 Marine aggregate extraction, dredging and solid S.L. Bell & N.J. Stephenson 193 waste disposal at sea 9.5 Oil and gas developments S.L. Bell & N.J. Stephenson 197 9.6 Water quality and effluent discharges S.L. Bell & N.J. Stephenson 200 9.7 Leisure and tourism S.J. Everett 206 Chapter 10 Coastal management S.L. Fowler 213 10.1 Introduction 213 10.2 National coastal initiatives with regional elements 214 10.3 Regional coastal management groups and initiatives 216 Appendix 221 A.1 Frequently cited contact names and addresses 221 A.2 Local planning authorities; port and harbour authorities 222 A.3 Core reading list 223 A.4 Contributing authors 224 4 Foreword Information is vital for sound policy formulation. Decision collaborated in collating the information, their variety makers at national and local level need to know more than reflecting the extent of the interplay between the coastal just the scale, location and importance of natural resources environment and human activities. These organisations that are of value to humans. They have to understand how included the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, human activities affect the value of those resources and how the Scottish Office, the Department of the Environment to conduct those activities in an environmentally sustainable (Northern Ireland), the Environment Agency, the way. This is true for virtually every activity that impinges Countryside Commission, the Welsh Office, the Department on the natural environment. In the coastal zone the of the Environment, the Sea Fisheries Committees, English complexity of the relationships between the physical and Nature, Scottish Natural Heritage and the Countryside biological systems adds another dimension to the problems Council for Wales, together with local authorities, voluntary of formulating management policy. conservation organisations and private companies (notably I am pleased, therefore, to be introducing the Coasts and those in the oil industry, through the UK Offshore Operators seas of the United Kingdom series. The Coastal Directories Association). I am also pleased to be able to acknowledge project, of which this series of seventeen regional reports, the contribution made by the staff of the Joint Nature covering the whole of the UK coast, is an important product, Conservation Committee. As the work has evolved since has brought together an encyclopaedic range of information the first meetings of the Steering Group in 1990, the value of on our coastal resources and the human activities that are involving such a broad span of interests has been associated with them. Amongst the topics covered are the highlighted by the extent to which it has allowed new basic geology of the coasts around the United Kingdom and approaches and information sources to be identified. measures taken for sea defence and coast protection, the The regional reports will be of value to all who live and distribution and importance of the wildlife and habitats of work in the maritime areas of the UK, where informed our coasts and seas, including fish and fisheries, and the management is the key to the sustainable use of resources. climate and sea level changes to which they all are subject. The reports should become indispensable reference sources In addition to the value of the information itself, the way for organisations shouldering new or expanded the project has been run and the data collected has made an responsibilities for the management of Special Areas of important contribution to the quality of the product.