Efforts to restore underwater and coastal habitats are hamstrung by outdated legislation.
A new report by the Blue Marine Foundation has warned of an urgent need to improve and overhaul regulations and approaches to revitalising nature-depleted marine areas.
Despite having pledged to protect 30% of its land and sea by 2030, the UK is lagging behind where it should be to stand a chance of meeting that goal. And, while biodiversity net gain is helping make inroads out of the water, a fragmented and disjointed approach, and a planning and licensing system designed to support industrial development, is holding back efforts in seas and oceans.
NGOs, scientists and community groups often face months of delays and exorbitant, uncapped fees before they can begin work to restore ecosystems. Meanwhile, permissions granted to nature and economic-focused projects often overlap, so the future of one location can be pulled in opposing directions. In particular, concerns are mounting over the health and sustainability of native oyster reefs, Saltmarsh and seagrass meadows.
Marine restoration plays a crucial role in tackling the biodiversity and climate crisis, and many countries, including the UK, have pledged to protect 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030,’ the report explained. ‘Despite this evidence, increased public and government interest, and investment in restoration practitioner capacity, restoration projects have been small scale and focused on individual habitats.
At present, there is only one defined and established seascape-scale project in the UK, and around seven large-scale seascape restoration projects across Europe, although other multi-habitat projects exist, the scarcity of seascape-scale projects in the UK is partly due to the significant policy challenges to scaling up marine restoration,’ it continued.
Taking office yesterday, Prime Minister Andy Burnham is under pressure to safeguard more of Britain’s marine areas, albeit intense lobbying is also underway to u-turn on the decision of former-Labour leader Keir Starmer’s decision not to grant more North Sea oil and gas licenses
Image: David Walker | Walker Design Co. / Unsplash
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