I am coming. A razorbill attempts a very wobbly landing in Saltee Islands, Ireland. Photograph: Ines Godinez. Comedy wildlife photography awards 2024
Welcome to OCF’s insights from the marine and coastal sector. This week we have summarised the most relevant stories for you from Fisheries, Offshore Wind, Offshore Industries, Conservation, Climate and Marine Pollution.
Fisheries
NOAA Fisheries is recommending more than $2.6 million in funding for 13 projects under its 2024 Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program.
The newly elected Dutch government has published a plan to overturn the EU ban on pulse fishing, which was introduced in June 2021. In the UK Industry, pulse fishing is considered responsible for huge negative impacts, not just on the sole fishery but on the wider ecosystem. UK sole fishermen continue to report that grounds fished by the pulse vessels have failed to recover since the ban was put in place. Whether the Dutch government will be able to overturn the ban is debated, with organisations prepared to challenge any reintroduction in European waters.
The UK Bluefin Tuna Championship was held in Falmouth in September, the first ever catch-and-release bluefin tuna tournament in the UK. The event builds on the success of the new English Catch and Release Recreational Fishery (CRRF), set up in Falmouth as a world-class sustainable fishery as bluefin tuna return to UK waters.
Defra plans to expand the use of Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) in English waters over the next five years, with fully documented fisheries ensuring a well-evidenced, sustainable future for the fishing industry. They have started work with their first early adopter vessel.
The ‘Rethink Fisheries For thriving seas and communities’ event took place during Ocean Week in Brussels. Attendees included fishery experts, NGOs, Members of the European Parliament, and fisherfolk. The event was organised by Seas At Risk, Patagonia, Oceana, Blue Ventures, Low Impact Fishers of Europe, ClientEarth and Only One.
Offshore Wind
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has announced the $1.9 million Offshore Wind Workforce Readiness programme. The programme will make awards of up to $250,000 to successful applicants offering offshore wind education and training programs, with particular attention to programs that support underserved communities.
The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) approved the Atlantic Shores South 1 and 2 project plan to construct and operate two offshore wind energy facilities, with a combined generating capacity of up to 2.8 MW. It represents the final approval needed from BOEM.
Northern Offshore Services and Volvo Penta joined forces to build a crew transfer vessel that could transform the industry. The vessel is currently operating in a U.K. wind farm in the North Sea, and is designed to work with a range of power sources, including full electric, hybrid and internal combustion engines that can run on hydrotreated vegetable oil. This will allow the industry to produce clean energy while using as little dirty energy as possible.
Empire Energy Partners’ Offshore Division is collaborating with Sarens, a global leader in heavy lifting, transport, and engineering, to deliver a comprehensive ‘one-stop-shop’ solution for US offshore wind projects. It is hoped by leveraging their combined strengths they can better meet the increasing demand for domestic offshore wind projects.
A generator on a turbine at the Kincardine floating wind farm off the coast of Scotland has been replaced, in what is being claimed as the “world’s first” in-situ major component exchange at a floating offshore wind farm.
Offshore Industry
The UK’s Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, announced £22 billion in funding for two carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, projected to directly create 4,000 jobs. While the Climate Change Committee believes CCS to be crucial in meeting the UK’s climate targets, the technical and commercial feasibility of CCS at scale remains questioned, with others doubting whether the technology is simply enabling a continued reliance on fossil fuels.
A team of scientists has analysed how Orbital Marine Power’s O2 turbine interacts with Orkney’s powerful currents, providing insights into the optimal placement of tidal stream turbines, and highlighting the need of site-specific assessments. Their findings emphasised that the turbulent flows surrounding tidal devices can impact the device and its performance, as well as the surrounding environment.
Conservation
Australia’s Federal Environment Minister, Tanya Plibersek, has expanded the sub-Antarctic Heard and McDonald Islands Marine Park, making Australia the world leader in ocean protection. This 310,000km² expansion means that 52% of Australia’s oceans are now under protection.
The UK Government released their annual update from the Blue Belt Programme, a marine conservation initiative supporting the UK Overseas Territories. The territories involved currently protect over 4.4 million square kilometres of marine environment across almost every major ocean, making it the largest network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) of its kind on the planet.
The Crown Estate has published a new ambition for Nature Recovery that will drive a consistent approach across its diverse assets on land and seabed, following a 12-month engagement process with a wide range of nature experts and organisations.
Wildlife and Countryside Link and nature campaigners are calling on an urgent UK nature rescue plan, including improving the condition of protected nature sites, and designating more English waters as Highly Protected Marine Areas. An annual progress tracker on the landmark 30×30 nature target shows a decrease in the amount of land in England effectively protected for nature to under 3%, while the amount of sea protected increases fractionally to 9.92%. Without urgent remedies, the UK’s poor progress risks failure for nature on the global stage.
Led by Indigenous wisdom and backed by global scientific consensus, Māori and Pacific leaders have signed the historic ‘He Whakaputanga Moana’ treaty, officially granting whales legal personhood. In a groundbreaking moment for ocean conservation, whales now have the right to migrate freely, live in healthy oceans and thrive alongside humanity. Whales could soon be recognised as official “ocean ambassadors” at the United Nations, a major step that could influence future global policy.
A research team of more than 30 European researchers from the Native Oyster Restoration Alliance have quantitatively described what oyster reefs looked like before they were impacted by overfishing, and the spatial extent of the ecosystems they formed. Past evidence of oyster reefs was found almost everywhere, from Norway to the Mediterranean, covering at least 1.7 million hectares, an area larger than Northern Ireland. They hope their findings will create a radical shift in perceptions of what European coastal waters used to look like, and provide evidence to set more ambitious goals for future restoration.
During Ocean Week in Brussels (30 September – 4 October), 140 organisations urged the newly elected EU institutions to take bold measures to protect Europe’s oceans and coastlines, by launching a Blue Manifesto. The manifesto provides a step-by-step roadmap to a healthy ocean, including launching an Ocean Fund and banning destructive activities at sea. It also demands a just transition to a blue economy, aligned with ecological limits and sustainable practices.
Deutsche Bank, the first financial institution to join the #BackBlue initiative in 2023, is set to further strengthen its commitment to ocean conservation. This initiative, led by the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) and supported by the United Nations, focuses on developing financial solutions that prioritise ocean protection.
A new paper has provided the first global assessment of the contribution of other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) towards the ‘30×30’ biodiversity Target 3. They found almost 30% of the 820 reported OECMs overlap with identified Key Biodiversity Areas.
First Minister John Swinney has confirmed that 67 projects will share a total of £14 million in support from the latest round of Marine Fund Scotland.
The Environment Agency is asking people in England to talk to their beaches via AI technology. By scanning QR signs, the beach will share the latest news from Environment Agency monitoring about bathing water quality. As a two-way conversation, beach lovers will also be able to report their own information about the site.
Climate
The Crown Estate has awarded an Agreement for Lease to global energy company, Eni, for the first carbon capture and storage project in the UK to repurpose existing pipeline infrastructure, reducing both cost and the environmental impact of construction. Once operational, the project is proposed to store emissions equivalent to about two million UK households per year.
NOAA and Esri are leveraging NOAA’s massive stores of world-class data with Esri’s geospatial technical innovations and capabilities to create the prototype for a one-of-a-kind, fully interoperable open data platform to provide equitable, actionable and ready-to-use ocean and coastal data for decision makers and communities. The end goal is to design an ocean and coastal data information system that not only shows users where to go to access data, but informs users on how best to interpret and use that data, to create a bigger and stronger blue economy.
Many of the Earth’s “vital signs” have hit record extremes, indicating that “the future of humanity hangs in the balance”, a group of the world’s most senior climate experts has said. The temperature of the Earth’s surface and oceans hit an all-time high, driven by record burning of fossil fuels, the report found. While wind and solar energy grew by 15% in 2023, the researchers said, coal, oil and gas still dominated. They said there was “stiff resistance from those benefiting financially from the current fossil-fuel based system”.
Marine Pollution
The North Sea has been identified as a likely microplastic sink, as a recent study showed that the surface water holds/sustains high concentrations of microplastic. The findings demonstrated that litters of all size classes are abundant in surface water, highlighting that it is a key compartment for the transport of marine litter. Surface waters should be monitored to better our understanding of the fate and danger of plastic contamination in our ocean.
Mediterranean countries are taking a joint approach reporting, monitoring and sharing data about shipping pollution incidents.
A new study published in the Science journal shows a decline in entanglement rates among the endangered species at many sites in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands during the past 25 years.
Calls to Action
Online survey from the Marine Management Organisation for stakeholders of demersal fisheries in Celtic Sea and Western Channel (closes 31 Jan).
England’s East Marine Plans are being replaced because after the Plans’ second three-year report (2020) it was decided that the policies are no longer fit for purpose due to wider legislative and policy changes since the adoption of the plans in 2014. Following publication of the East Marine Plan Statement of Public Participation in April, the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has moved into the second stage of East Marine Plan development, Issues with Supporting Evidence. There are three in-person opportunities for all stakeholders operating in the east marine plan areas to give their perspectives on the issues.
- Tuesday 5th of November, Norwich
- Wednesday 6th of November, Peterborough
- Thursday 7th of November, Hull
The MMO’s Marine Planning Team recommend that stakeholders watch the Marine Planning 101 webinar before attending the Issues with Supporting Evidence event. It provides an overview of the process of Marine Planning and the legislation behind it.
Apply for funding to enhance understanding of the ecological, economic and social value of marine artificial structures’ (MAS) natural capital to inform decision making and policy solutions for management for all life stages. The full economic cost (FEC) of your project can be up to £5,624,000.