Meeting of the Parliament 19 February 2015
I, too, welcome the national marine plan as a positive step towards effective marine spatial planning of the Scottish sea area. I acknowledge that, although the plan is a work in progress, it needs to be implemented, in part at least, to allow regional planners within the 11 regions to manage their natural environment. However, the impact of certain sectors has not been addressed within the plan and that could jeopardise the recovery of the marine environment.
It is wrong at this time to place targets on the tonnage of fin fish to be produced per year, considering the environmental implications of a mismanaged fish farm—we should not pretend that those do not exist. The environmental impacts of the farms can range from internal effects, which might affect only a single cage or, at worst, a farm to those that have repercussions through whole water bodies and ecosystems. Effects such as nutrient enrichment, contamination through fish faecal matter, increased parasite numbers and fish escapees from cages all carry significant risk to wild populations and ecosystems. Sea lice are of particular concern.
Although I understand that the industry contributes towards food security as well as to the Scottish economy, the risks that I have outlined cannot be taken too lightly. The targets should be subject to rigorous environmental impact assessment and, given the knowledge that we now have, presumed against in some areas of high sensitivity.
The lack of climate change mitigation measures in the oil and gas sector is baffling, considering the fact that this sector is probably the most polluting of all. Rather than showing a commitment towards a low-carbon economy, the plan seems to promote sector growth of the oil and gas industry. I hope that that will be reconsidered. Scotland has climate change targets, and the industry needs to be accountable for the damage that it does to the environment.
Concerns have been raised that the 11 marine regions may not be able to cope with the challenge of managing their coastline, whether that is due to funding issues or a lack of expertise or resources. There must be a cohesive approach from local authorities, environmental groups and local people to deliver the plan’s objectives. I believe that the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee is correct in its assessment that local authorities are not currently equipped to deal with setting up and monitoring local marine plans. However, development of tools and collaboration between local authorities might ensure that, if mistakes are made, they are not repeated.
The plan needs to be more ambitious in setting targets for not only the recovery of the marine environment but its enhancement, both outside and inside marine protected areas. My constituency contains the Wester Ross MPA, which has some badly damaged maerl beds, despite the fact that they are a priority marine feature. The management plan has now become obsolete as a result of further scientific work that has been carried out on the location of the beds, and there have been reported infringements of the voluntary marine area. The national marine plan needs to first protect and then restore vulnerable areas such as those beds, alongside the marine protected area legislation.
In one comparatively small sea loch in Wester Ross there is all manner of activity, including three ferries a day; commercial trawling; fishing; scallop diving; shellfish creel fishing; divers visiting three wrecks; sea angling; wildlife boat trips; people using skiffs, kayaks and canoes and mooring yachts; windsurfing; water-skiing; people attending a sailing school; fish farming; visiting cruise liners; and even wee girls and boys fishing off the end of the jetty or, if they get the chance, the big pier. Further, there might soon be subsea cabling.
That kind of activity in our sea lochs merits the kind of management that we are talking about. I have two concerns, the first of which is that we police the management properly. I am not sure how that will be done but it is essential if it is to have any effect. My other concern is the matter that is left to the creativity of industry and fishermen to deal with: the litter in the sea and the education that is needed for that to change.
I agree with Rob Gibson and Tavish Scott that the local variations of the national plan will be essential and welcome.
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