David Attenborough’s recent Ocean film shone a light on the damage to the seabed that can be caused by bottom-trawling. Dorset Wildlife Trust is very pleased to learn that Southern Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority’s 2023 Bottom-Towed Gear byelaw has now come into force. This updates an earlier byelaw to include additional protected areas and features designated in 2019 and means that over 34% of Dorset’s inshore waters are now closed to bottom-towed gear. Protecting the seabed from trawling and dredging can lead to dramatic recovery of marine life, as happened in Lyme Bay following the closure of 60 square miles to mobile gear in 2008.
This comes at a time when the Marine Management Organisation is consulting on proposed byelaws to protect offshore Marine Protected Areas – in Dorset this would mean two sites – Albert Field Marine Conservation Zone and West of Wight Barfleur Marine Conservation Zone being closed to bottom trawlers. The consultation is open until September - find out more and to lend your support.
Whilst we support Southern IFCA’s new byelaw and the protection it brings, it still leaves about 13% of the seabed within Dorset inshore MPAs open to trawling, either on the grounds that there is insufficient evidence of protected habitats and species, or that the seabed habitat is not deemed sensitive to trawling. The closing shots from Ocean see Sir David looking out over Studland Bay, talking about a positive future – he might be disappointed to learn that 40% of the Studland Bay Marine Conservation Zone falls outside of the newly announced protection.
