A film released earlier today (December 16) by the Oceana conservation charity reflects the positive effects of inshore trawling bans on the Sussex coast.

The film comes after the introduction of a regulation that prohibits inshore trawling along the coast, protecting 170 km2 of valuable shoreline for the environment.

Prior to the ban, the film suggests, years of underwater trawling destroyed underwater kelp forests that destroyed habitats protecting a range of species and served as a valuable defense against global warming by absorbing carbon dioxide. .

Steve Allnut, a West Sussex ocean free diver and activist who shoots underwater images off the coast, said he hopes “Sussex marks the start of a massive domino effect in the rest of the world. from the United Kingdom.

“I have seen for myself how quickly kelp and other marine life can bounce back when left alone by trawlers. While this is truly encouraging, it is also devastating to think of the destruction that continues. to occur in the rest of the oceans and seas of the UK Government must follow Sussex’s lead and ban 0-3 nautical mile bottom trawling off the rest of the coast and in all areas marine protected (MPA).

The film was released after the UK government announced it would license more than 1,000 fishing vessels from the EU and UK, allowing trawling to continue in MPAs during the news. year.

Bottom trawling involves towing heavy gear along the seabed, which often involves destruction of the habitats and ecosystems of the animals that live there.

Bottom trawling of this type is currently permitted in over 97% of UK MPAs. The government has committed to adopt fisheries management in all MPAs by 2024 but, at the current rate, Oceana has predicted that the fishing method may continue to be allowed in unprotected areas until 2050.

“We need an immediate ban on trawling and dredging in all marine protected areas offshore as well as in the coastal area,” said Melissa Moore, UK policy manager at Oceana in Europe. “To continue to allow this destructive activity, when we know the damage it causes and that it is illegal under various environmental laws, suggests. A simple license condition should prohibit fishing in MPAs. We must protect our marine habitats and, in turn, many will also help us protect ourselves from climate change by sequestering and storing carbon. ”

The charity is now calling for a ban on coastal trawling across the UK, hoping it will help prevent a “climate and ecological crisis”.

A spokesperson for Oceana said: “By leaving the coastal area to low impact fishermen such as crab and lobster potters, and banning scallop dredging and bottom trawling which damage coastal habitats, this area will provide an important nursery area for fish which will help to repopulate further. It will also see the recovery of blue carbon habitats from kelp, reefs and seagrass beds. “