The UK Government has unveiled a major expansion of its Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), a move set to have significant effects on Scotland’s rich coastal ecosystems.
Thirteen new MPAs have been designated, increasing the total number across the UK to 377 and extending protection to an additional 4,000 square kilometres of marine habitat – an area roughly the size of Essex.
While the latest byelaws specifically target English waters – such as areas off the Isle of Wight, Cornwall, and Suffolk – the policy shift is highly relevant for Scotland, which boasts some of the most ecologically diverse and economically important marine environments in the UK.
Scottish MPAs already cover about 37 per cent of Scotland’s seas, including internationally renowned sites in the Hebrides, Orkney, and Shetland.
The new measures ban damaging fishing practices like bottom trawling in protected zones, safeguarding seabed habitats vital for species such as pink sea fans, sponges, and anemones.
Additionally, a permanent ban on sandeel fishing in the English North Sea is expected to benefit seabird populations and marine mammals that migrate through or reside in Scottish waters.
The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) will enforce these protections as part of the UK’s commitment to the Global 30×30 target – protecting 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030.
In Scotland, the Scottish Government continues to develop its own Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs), aiming for even stricter conservation standards.
Environmental groups have welcomed the expansion, but stress that effective management and enforcement remain crucial, especially in Scotland’s vast and often remote marine areas.
Only 8 per cent of English seas are currently classed as effectively protected, and conservationists urge both UK and Scottish authorities to accelerate progress towards the target of having at least 70 per cent of protected features in a favourable condition by 2042.
Don MacNeish, co-founder of the Community Arran Seabed Trust, said: “David Attenborough is nearly a hundred years old and when he was born, Scotland actually had better protections in place than we do now.
“By properly protecting our seas, we will not only witness benefits to the environment and nature but also to coastal low impact fishermen, wildlife tourism and local communities.”
The expansion of MPAs signals a renewed commitment to restoring the health of the UK’s – and Scotland’s – seas, supporting biodiversity, sustainable fisheries, and the resilience of coastal communities for generations to come.
