The United Kingdom has announced a ban on bottom trawling in over half of its protected marine areas, Environment Minister Steve Reed said ahead of the UN Ocean Conference in Nice.
Writing in The Observer, Reed stated that he would announce the UK government’s plans to ban bottom trawling across 41 protected areas of English seas, covering 30,000 square kilometres, at the conference, which runs from 9 to 13 June.
“Bottom trawling is destroying the most vulnerable areas of our oceans,” the British Environment Minister said. Its impact is staggering, causing damage not only to the seabed but also to the environment as a whole, he added.
Marine and fisheries stakeholders in the UK are being asked to take part in a public consultation on the prohibition of bottom trawling.
Flemish Minister for Fisheries, Hilde Crevits, stated, for her part, that the impact of bottom trawling on Belgian fisheries was still uncertain.
“We need to await the UK’s public consultation to assess its effect," Minister Crevits said. "We are closely monitoring the situation in coordination with the sector.”
There are 181 protected marine areas in the UK, covering 93,000 square kilometres or 40% of British waters.
Bottom trawling, which involves dragging a large net along the seabed to catch fish and shellfish, is already banned in 18,000 square kilometres of protected marine areas.
