As World Oceans Day is celebrated on 8th June, an advanced seabed map has become the first in the UK to be made freely available to the public, making it possible to see the sea floor in all its glory, including reefs, wrecks and rocky ledges. Showing not only the contours but, via linked photographs, many of the habitats of the seabed from Abbotsbury to Swanage, the DORset Integrated Seabed study (DORIS) map allows divers, conservationists and marine planners to see exactly what is located at the ocean floor, whether for recreational diving or for decision making about the use of Dorset’s marine sites.
So why is the map such a breakthrough?
Peter Tinsley, marine conservation officer at Dorset Wildlife Trust, said: “This map marks a huge step for the marine environment. Already it has enabled us to find important wildlife hotspots and we want to continue pushing back the boundaries of knowledge about a part of the county that still holds many mysteries.”
The DORIS project has been undertaken by Dorset Wildlife Trust, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and Channel Coastal Observatory, with a major biodiversity grant of £300,000 from Viridor Credits Environmental Company, through the Landfill Communities Fund. Starting with an acoustic survey, plotting the exact contours of the sea floor, the final stage involved hundreds of dives, photographs and surveys to add the detailed habitat element of the map. People can now zoom in on any part of the mapped area and link to actual images of the seabed and even species lists from the surveys.
Who will find the map the most useful?
The map is already causing great excitement among marine agencies, eager to make use of it: the Maritime and Coastguard Agency will use the map to update navigation charts, the Channel Coastal Observatory will provide information to coastal engineers and Dorset Wildlife Trust will use it to identify important and vulnerable seabed habitats. It will be used by the Dorset Coast Forum’s C-SCOPE project to create a marine plan for Dorset, but the map is also available to the public, opening up the underwater world as never before.
Peter added: “Recreational divers can now choose an interesting or unexplored spot from the map, take the GPS co-ordinates and head straight to it. We are particularly keen for volunteer divers to help us to continue the surveying so that we can fill in more habitat information.”
Lisa Nelson, general manager of Viridor Credits, said: “We are delighted to have been able to support such an interesting and unusual biodiversity project. There is still so much to learn about the seabed and the marine environment. I know that the DORIS map will make a huge difference to everyone from scientists to leisure divers and be quite fascinating for older children.”
Where can I view the DORIS Map?
Following the success of the project, there is now an opportunity to continue the work over the next 2 years, to extend the map to the western tip of the Isle of Wight in the east and to cover the whole of Lyme Bay in the west, giving full coverage of the Dorset coast.
You can see the DORIS map in Google Earth at http://tinyurl.com/dorismap, with linked photos appearing as you zoom in. (Google Earth can be downloaded on to your computer, free of charge). Divers who are interested in helping to record Dorset’s underwater wildlife can contact Dorset Wildlife Trust on 01305 264620 or see www.dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk.
Notes to Editor
For more information please contact Peter Tinsley at Dorset Wildlife Trust on 01305 264620.
For more about the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, contact the MCA press office on 02380 329401
For more about Channel Coastal Observatory, contact Dr Travis Mason on 023 8059 8468 www.channelcoast.org
Full bathymetric data will be freely available in June via the Channel Coastal Observatory website (www.channelcoast.org).
About Dorset Wildlife Trust www.dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk
Dorset Wildlife Trust was founded in 1961 to protect the wildlife and natural habitats of the county and now has over 25,000 members and manages 45 nature reserves. Most are open daily and there are visitor centres providing a wealth of wildlife information at Brooklands Farm, Lorton Meadows, Kingcombe Meadows and Brownsea Island Nature Reserves, The Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve and the Urban Wildlife Centre at Upton Heath Nature Reserve.
The largest voluntary nature conservation organisation in Dorset, DWT plays a key role in dealing with local environmental issues. It leads the way in establishing the practices of sustainable development and engaging new audiences in conservation, particularly in the urban areas.
Viridor Credits actively seeks applications from groups, organisations and projects that would not necessarily obtain funding from other, often more complicated, grant schemes. Applications can be made for projects that fall into one of three categories, provided that the project is located within 10 miles of a landfill site. They are:
Provision or maintenance of public amenities in the vicinity of a landfill site
The conservation or promotion of biological diversity within the vicinity of a landfill site throughthe provision, conservation, restoration or enhancement of a natural habitat, orthe maintenance or recovery of a species or its habitat on land or water
Maintenance, restoration or renovation of buildings of historical or architectural importance or those used for religious worship, provided they offer public access and are within the vicinity of a licensed landfill.
Seasearch is a project for volunteer sports divers who have an interest in what they're seeing under water, want to learn more and want to help protect the marine environment around the coasts of Britain and Ireland.
Seasearch is co-ordinated by the Marine Conservation Society on behalf of the Seasearch Steering Group which comprises the Marine Conservation Society, Wildlife Trusts, Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Natural England, Countryside Council for Wales, Scottish Natural Heritage, Environment and Heritage Service Northern Ireland, Environment Agency, Marine Biological Association, Nautical Archaeological Society, British Sub Aqua Club, Sub Aqua Association, Professional Association of Diving Instructors, Scottish Sub Aqua Club, Irish Underwater Council and independent marine life experts.
As World Oceans Day is celebrated on 8th June, an advanced seabed map has become the first in the 
Who will find the map the most useful?
Where can I view the DORIS Map?
home | events | contact us | e-news signup | jobs