37 more Marine Conservation Zones to be considered

We are pleased to hear this afternoon’s (24th February 2014) announcement by Defra that a further 37 Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) are being considered for designation in 2015.

However, this is still a long way off what is needed for a full network of protection to reduce the considerable decline in marine biodiversity in English waters.

At a meeting of stakeholders in London to discuss the development of the UK’s Marine Protected Area network, Defra announced the list of sites but said the official consultation on the 2nd tranche of MCZs won’t begin until early 2015.

It’s good news that the Government has recognized the importance of providing more detail on which sites they are focusing on along with potential management measures. In the past, due to lack of information, there was some scaremongering and hype that the MCZs would prevent all activities when in most instances, low impact fishing and recreation will continue as before, though bottom towed gear will of course need managing.  

It’s good to hear which sites Government has prioritised for the 2nd tranche of MCZs, but this is still a long way off the full network.

Melissa Moore, Senior Policy Officer said “It’s good to hear which sites Government has prioritised for the 2nd tranche of MCZs, but this is still a long way off the full network. We hope this 2nd tranche, along with the promised 3rd tranche are designated as soon as possible to prevent further damage. As before, we will help gather more data on the inshore sites through our volunteer Seasearch divers this year, but Government must designate more offshore sites for broadscale habitats too.”

27 MCZs were designated in the first tranche in November 2013 - one hundred shy of the 127 originally recommended as necessary to deliver England’s contribution to an Ecologically Coherent Network in UK seas.

Melissa Moore says MCS is extremely concerned that, as a result of Government’s de-regulation agenda, a number of Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCAs) are considering voluntary management measures, rather than byelaws: “We are presently awaiting more detail on management measures for the first 27 sites, but voluntary management has consistently been proven not to work. However great the buy in, one or two fishermen, often fishers from outside the local area can ruin the efforts of the majority. Without legal redress the good work of many can be spoiled, often irrevocably, by a few. It is vital that these MCZs are not “paper parks”.

Once again, thank you Sea Champions! You alone collected over 7,000 pledges for a full network of MCZs, donated nearly 500 hours of your time inputting pledge data, wrote to your local newspapers, met with MPs, spread the word on social media and joined us on a freezing February morning to march on Westminster led by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

See the list of 37 provisional sites to be considered.

Beautiful jewel anenomes at "The Manacles" - a designated Marine Conservation Zone off the coast of Cornwall

Children ‘GO BLUE!’ with Ecover Schools Blue Mile!

Children across the nation will ‘GO BLUE!’ to celebrate the world’s oceans in the Ecover Schools Blue Mile – a nationwide event which is raising money for MCS.

Sea Champions up and down the country are encouraging their local schools to take part on Friday 6th June. 

For the day, schools will teach children about the sea, seashore and marine wildlife, supported by the Ecover Schools Blue Mile resources and ideas for cross-curriculum activities, either in the classroom or out in nature.

From painting and making sea creatures, to swimming and trying out a watersport, the activities are designed to educate young people about the importance of the oceans – and where possible, get them out into a natural environment.

This year’s Ecover Schools Blue Mile has a strong anti-pollution message. Schools are being encouraged to run a school-wide ban on plastic bags and bottles, provide plastic recycling points or be creative and decorate bags for life, our by getting out on to the beach for a beach clean-up.  

If schools can’t do it on World Oceans Day, they can they can still GO BLUE! at any time that suits.

Sue Ranger, who runs the MCS education programme says: "It’s really important that young children get to see how special our shores and seas are, as the future of our oceans is in their hands.”

For more ideas and to register for GO BLUE!, visit www.thebluemile.com

Making a splash at the Ecover Blue Mile schools event last summer! Get your local school signed up today.

And the show went on ...thanks to Sea Champions!

The London Dive show, or London International Diving Exhibition to give it the proper title, is one of our biggest and most important supporter events of the year.

MCS Marketing Manager, Debbie Stenner, tells us how our team of Sea Champions inspired hundreds of people to make a pledge to marine conservation, despite being hampered by some typically bad, British weather...

"Amidst winds and rain, I braved the floods around Ross-on-Wye, and headed down to the London Dive Show to meet up with Sea Champions and Volunteer Coordinators Matt and Ed.

Flights and trains were being cancelled, and all but essential travel was being advised against. The irony of an underwater sports show being hampered by floods was not lost on me, but thankfully, our Sea Champions were undaunted. Big thanks especially to Sea Champion Sarah Conner, who endured a rather turbulent flight down from Scotland!

None the less, although quieter than last year, it was a good show. The diving public were genuinely keen to hear more about how we’re trying to help UK seas recover from man’s exploitation.

Big thanks go to Sea Champions, you helped us speak to hundreds of divers about our conservation work, signed up over 70 new members, and encouraged lots of people to donate their time to help protect our UK seas, shores and wildlife. 

Sea Champions were also promoting our competition to win a marine conservation dive with Monty Halls! There's still time to enter if you haven't already - closing date 28thFebruary.

Thank you to everyone who gave their time and energy and I’m looking forward to the next big event. Hopefully a drier one."

If you would like to help out at an upcoming event, get in touch with your Volunteer Coordinator and check out our guide to representing MCS at events.

MCS staff and Sea Champions at the London Dive Show (Debbie Stenner, centre)

Could you be the next Sea Champion to inspire our youths?

As a Sea Champion, you are the voice of our seas in your communities. It's so important to inspire young people about our amazing marine life, as these are the people who will be speaking out for our seas in the future. Could you be the next Sea Champion to inspire people through a talk? Or enthuse people about our amazing marine life at events?

Alice Lockhart, age 12 from London, created a slide show as part of a school project after discovering the horrific truth behind shark fin soup. "I was shocked by how these majestic animals were treated so abominably."

Alice would relish the chance to one day become a marine biologist: "The seas are one of the great uncontrollable forces of nature, making up 70 percent of planet earth they sustain a fully balanced and complete ecosystem that depicts awe and wonder in to the hearts of millions. I find the oceans fascinating and would love to work discovering more about the most unexplored surface of the planet, the great expanse of water that we call the sea." 

Get in touch with your Volunteer Coordinator if you'd like to inspire people through giving a talk in your communities or by representing MCS at events.

See Alice's amazing school project below:

 

Nice work Alice!

 

For up to date information on sharks, visit www.fishonline.org 

 

Chilly Seasearch dive this winter

Scottish Sea Champions completed the furthest westerly Seasearch dive along the Forth Estuary

Sea Champion Sarah Conner donned her drysuit with Volunteer Coordintor Matt Barnes for a chilly December Seasearch survey.

"It was quite an interesting one, we surveyed the area quite far up the estuary near the iconic Forth rail bridge. Although only a shallow dive, there were strong currents and visability was under 1 meter. That said, the site was surprisingly interesting with loads of colourful sea slugs (nudibranchs), brittle stars and dead mans fingers" says Matt.

During 2014, Matt and Sarah are hoping to explore more inner Forth estuary unmapped sites!

Are you a certified diver in Scotland? Get in touch with Matt for more information if you'd like to get involved with Seasearch.

Check out some of Scotland's amazing life beneath the waves.

2013 - What a year for Sea Champions!

Thank you to all of our Sea Champions across the UK! We have achieved so much in 2013 thanks to your continued support and work in your communities.

You helped get hundreds of school children to “Paint-a-Fish”, delivering a strong message to Europe’s politicians who have voted to end decades of overfishing by the EU, and have set ambitious targets to restore fish stocks to much healthier levels by 2020.

You were a major contribution to the success of the Marine Conservation Zones Campaign through lobbying MP’s, writing to local newspapers, tweeting, raising awareness, collecting over 7,000 campaign signatures, inputting pledge data and of course marching on Westminster! The announcement by Government of 27 MCZs is a significant milestone for marine conservation in English seas and we’re pleased to see consultation on future zones timetabled in 2015/16 and 2016/17.

Similarly in Scotland, your hard work hitting events, outdoor shows and museum open days and giving talks to Rotary clubs, schools and wildlife clubs resulted in 3,496 pledges of support for a network of Marine Protected Areas in Scotland. We are now eagerly awaiting the results of the consultation which will be announced over the coming months. 

It doesn’t stop there, thank you to all who are: Beachwatch Volunteers and Organisers cleaning and surveying litter on your favourite beaches; taking part in “Hang on to your tackle” installing angling bins to combat one of the most destructive forms of beach litter; who are taking part in “Don’t let go” to stop balloon and lantern releases in your area and who are helping us fight the issue of microplastics in beauty products.

We couldn’t have done this without you!

This is your year in pictures.

Do something amazing this year and become an MCS fundraiser!

Have you dreamed of sea kayaking around the UK? Or what about driving all the way to Mongolia? Right now, we even have two fundraisers walking from Cardiff in Wales to Cardiff in Australia to raise funds for our work! These are some of the more extreme challenges that our fundraisers have taken on, we have many challenge events happening closer to home as well as fundraising activities that don’t involve breaking a sweat.

Here are some ideas for fundraising in 2014!

Shed some Christmas pounds and take on a challenge
The Big Sea Swim takes place in Eastbourne every summer where you can take part in a 1km or 3km wild swim. Or if you fancy a land-based challenge, you could join 20,000 cyclists in the RideLondonSurrey100 - a modified version of the London 2012 Olympic Road Race route?

Challenges don’t have to be quite so extreme - many of our fundraisers organise a range of activities such as coastal walks with their family and friends. Take a look at the Wall of Fame to see some of the amazing things our fundraisers have done for our seas.

Why not hold a Big Blue Day?
Holding a Big Blue Day is great fun - all you need is a group of people and some blue stuff - it's that easy! We have volunteers all over the country baking blue cakes, holding blue themed dress down days in their office or school, or inviting their friends over for a sustainable seafood supper to raise a few pounds to protect our oceans. Whatever you do, do it in blue and don't forget that every penny raised really does count! Sea Champion Vicky Saunders raised £200 through a Big Blue Day at her workplace last year.

Love water? You can take part in the Ecover Blue Mile
MCS are the official charity partner of the Ecover Blue Mile for the second year running! Fancy having a go at kayaking or stand-up paddle boarding? Or how about marching with mermaids, walking along the coast or cleaning a beach? Join us at an event near you or have a go at completing your own Blue Mile. Get involved and help us raise a target of £50,000!

Prefer to keep your feet dry? Find a home for a collection box!
Taking part in events isn’t always for everyone so another popular way to fundraise is to find somewhere to display a collection box. You could ask your local aquaria, shop or café to display a collection box and then return the donations raised to MCS. It’s as simple as that!

Have a look at our fundraising resources, and get in touch with our Community & Events Fundraiser Tori Williams, or your Volunteer Coordinator to chat about ideas or for more information.