In this issue
Consultation on the draft plan for the East of England
The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) will begin a 12-week public consultation on the draft marine plan for the East inshore and offshore areas early in 2013. The draft plan will soon be going to Government for approval prior to the consultation.
We will be holding exhibitions and drop-in sessions for you to view the draft plan and speak with a marine planner about how it may affect you. The draft plan will also be available to view online and hard copies will be available on request. Comments during the consultation can be made by email, in a letter or by using our online consultation system.
More information on how to get involved will be available over the next few months with full details on how you can have your say on the draft plan.
In the meantime, the Statement of Public Participation (SPP) for the East Plan areas offers further general guidance on how you can get involved.
TopUpcoming South plan area workshops
We will be hosting a series of workshops in the South Plan area at the beginning of 2013.
The coast and seas from Folkestone to the River Dart in Devon will be the second area in England to benefit from marine planning.
We anticipate these workshops will take place in Brighton, Southampton and Exeter with exact venues yet to be confirmed.
The purpose of these first workshops is to introduce the team, our timeline for planning in the South plan areas and get your input into how you can get involved in marine planning for your area. These workshops will help to inform the production of the Statement of Public Participation – the official guide on how to have your say on marine planning – which will then need formal approval from the Secretary of State before publication.
Invitations will be sent out shortly and the workshops will also be advertised on our website. If you would like to be added to our contact database, please email your details to planning@marinemanagement.org.uk
Annual UK fishing industry report published
The MMO has published its UK Sea Fisheries Statistics 2011 report, which shows a fall in quantity but an increase in value of fish landed by the UK fleet.
The report – available on the MMO website – includes detailed figures on the UK fishing fleet, the number of fishermen, the quantity and value of landings, international trade and the state of key fishing stocks.
The report shows that during 2011, UK vessels landed 600,000 tonnes of sea fish (including shellfish) into the UK and abroad with a value of £828 million.
This represents a 1 per cent fall in quantity but a 15 per cent increase in value compared with 2010. The rise in value is primarily due to a large increase in the average price of pelagic fish.
New report to cover wide range of fisheries data
A new report soon to be published by the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) will pull together the current evidence on location, trends and landings of fishing activity in English waters.
The review of fisheries is part of the MMO’s work to identify gaps in knowledge, and the report will make recommendations on what information is needed and how the evidence base could be improved in the future.
This will be used to shape marine plans, ensuring fisheries are fully taken account of as the MMO plans for the future use of our seas across all industries.
The information was gathered from existing scientific studies, and by speaking to fishing organisations and other experts in a workshop held in December 2011.Marine Planning ‘Out and About’ Diary
The Aquaculture plan workshop in London was attended by several of the planning team in September. It was attended by aquaculture specialists, Seafish, IFCAs, Environment Agency staff, WWF and others. The purpose of the workshop was to identify where further work or action could contribute to growth of aquaculture. The workshop was held following a consultation earlier in 2012 on the English Aquaculture sector. Information about this consultation can be found on the Defra website at www.gov.uk/government/consultations/planning-for-sustainable-growth-in-the-english-aquaculture-industry
Coming up:
- North East Coastal Group AGM on 10 October in Bridlington
- RTPI marine planning conference in Great Yarmouth on 25 October. For more information, go to www.rtpi.org.uk/the-rtpi-near-you/rtpi-east-of-england
- Dorset Coast Forum in November – we will be presenting at the Dorset Coast Forum, helping members to understand the marine planning timescale and the plan-making process for the South plan areas.
- Devon Maritime Forum in November – We will discuss the timeline for planning the South plan areas and how we can work together.
Introducing new team members, reintroducing others and saying farewell...
The Marine Planning Team has expanded with the addition of two new team members:
- Joanna Redhead joins us as Senior Marine Planner from Netgain Marine Conservation Zone project where she was Project Manager.
- Mel Nicholls has been appointed as Senior Marine Planner for Plan Production. Mel’s previous role was with the Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Northumberland County Council.
- Cara Forbes-Malone returns from maternity leave.
- David Cowell has left the MMO.