Second wave of marine protection welcomed by The Wildlife Trusts

Today, The Wildlife Trusts welcome the news that this Government is designating a
second phase of 23 new Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) - including two sites along
the spectacular north Devon coast.  This historic move illustrates a renewed impetus
to protect the seas around our shores.

It follows on from the announcement of 27 MCZs in 2013 - four of those were Devon
sites - and is the second of three phases promised by the Government in order to
fulfil the remit of the Marine and Coastal Access Act.

One of the two new MCZs for Devon is Bideford to Foreland Point, protecting marine
wildlife along one of Devon's most popular stretches of coast, from the Taw estuary
to the cliffs of Exmoor. Locals and holidaymakers alike know the array of anemones,
crabs and fish to be found in the rockpools of Ilfracombe and Combe Martin, as well
as the opportunities to spot cetaceans from Baggy Point or seals in Lee Bay. Now,
for the first time, the rich marine wildlife of the north Devon coast has legal
protection from damaging activities.

The future of marine habitats off the north-west Devon coast also looks more secure
following designation of the Hartland Point to Tintagel MCZ today. The northern
section of this new protected area is home to mussel beds and reef-building
honeycomb worms.

Richard White, Senior Marine Conservation Officer at Devon Wildlife Trust, welcomed
the announcement:  "This is really good news for marine life in North Devon and all
the more welcome as the boundaries within Devon waters were put forward by local
stakeholders  -  conservationists and fishermen working together to protect the
future of their own 'back-yard'."

The location of the Bideford to Foreland Point MCZ was first proposed by local
people, including fishermen, recreational sea-users, conservationists and
scientists. Forming a Marine Working Group under the umbrella of the North Devon
Biosphere Reserve, this group used their local knowledge of north Devon's marine
environment to recommend Bideford to Foreland Point to the Government as a Marine
Conservation Zone. After several years of campaigning by Devon Wildlife Trust and
others, all the hard work has paid off.

But Devon Wildlife Trust recognises that the second round of Marine Conservation
Zones still leaves many important marine wildlife sites without protection. Richard
White added: "There is still much more to do if the network of protection around our
coast is to be completed.  We await news on the future of six Devon estuaries
proposed as MCZs and there is still the question of how areas important for whales,
sharks and dolphins are to be protected."

Nationally, the 23 new MCZs are diverse and special places and include cold water
coral reefs, forests of sea fans, canyons and sandbanks, and an astonishingly varied
range of submerged landscapes which support the stunning diversity of marine life
found in the UK.  They include Land's End, one of the South-West's most recognised
areas and renowned for its rugged coastline, and the Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds in the
North Sea, thought to be Europe's largest chalk reef.  All will contribute towards a
network of areas which is urgently needed to ensure a healthy future for our seas.

Joan Edwards, head of Living Seas at The Wildlife Trusts, said:  "We welcome today's
designation of 23 Marine Conservation Zones.  UK seas have the potential to be full
of incredible life and colour but continued destruction has reduced them to a shadow
of their former selves. Without these astonishing submerged landscapes there simply
wouldn't be any fish, let alone fantastic jewel anemones, seahorses, dolphins,
brittlestars amongst all the other wild and extraordinary creatures which are part
of a healthy marine ecosystem."

Marine Conservation Zones are a type of protected area at sea designated for
habitats and species of national importance, including fragile seahorses, rare
native oysters and even cold water coral reefs.  Such protected areas are a tried
and tested means of giving vulnerable species the time and space to recover.

Joan Edwards added: "We are pleased by this Government's commitment to addressing
the decimation of our seabed over the past century, and to delivering an
ecologically coherent network of Marine Protected Areas.  This second step towards
the completion of a 'blue belt' in UK seas is crucial in turning the tide on the
state of our seas but there's still work to be done.  We look forward to working
with Government and stakeholders to ensure these 50 MCZs are properly managed and to
achieve the much-needed ambitious and comprehensive third and final 'tranche'.  This
will be the start of turning our over-fished, over-exploited and currently
under-protected waters back into a healthy and sustainable environment."

The list of Marine Conservation Zones was drawn-up by sea-users, scientists and
conservationists, with Government committing to designating the sites in three waves
or 'tranches'.  The Wildlife Trusts, actively involved in every step of the process,
are buoyed by the achievement of another important milestone on the road to better
protected seas.  We are calling for anyone interested in protecting our seas to join
more than 8,000 other passionate supporters and become a Friend of MCZ's 

The 23 Marine Conservation Zones 

1. Coquet to St Mary's

2. Farnes East 

3. Fulmar 
4. Runswick Bay

5. Holderness Inshore 

6. Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds
7. The Swale Estuary

8. Dover to Deal 

9. Dover to Folkestone
10. Offshore Brighton 

11. Offshore Overfalls

12. Utopia
13. The Needles 

14. Western Channel

15. Mounts Bay
16. Lands End 

17. North-West of Jones Bank 

18. Greater Haig Fras
19. Newquay and The Gannel
20. Hartland Point to Tintagel 

21. Bideford to Foreland Point
22. West of Walney 

23. Allonby Bay

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