Ten essential changes to scale up marine rewilding

1: Fast-track marine rewilding projects with a streamlined licensing system

Marine rewilding projects have to go through the same licensing process as developments such as new oil rigs. Though necessary in principle, the current process is extremely complex to navigate, burdensome, costly, doesn’t consider the positive impacts of marine restoration and is a significant hurdle to launching new projects, especially community-led ones. We need to reform this system to reflect the needs and support the development of these rewilding projects.

2: Develop funding mechanisms to empower communities to restore coastal ecosystems

Unlocking funding to empower coastal communities to rewild their coastlines on a large scale is essential. This could be done through private funding initiatives such as marine net gain, an environmental management concept aimed at ensuring that marine development projects result in a net positive impact on marine ecosystems and biodiversity. However, appropriate safeguards must be developed to avoid greenwashing.

3: Embrace a whole-site approach to Marine Protected Areas

Today, MPAs only afford protection to specific species. Damaging activities and developments, such as dredging, drilling for oil or gas, and bottom trawling, are still taking place within their boundaries, overlooking the interconnected nature of the marine environment. This approach doesn’t support the large-scale rewilding of our seas, nor does it allow these sites to play a key role in enabling the wider recovery of our marine environment. 

A holistic approach to managing these areas will maximise benefits for marine life and those depending on it, such as coastal communities and the fishing industry. That’s why, at a recent workshop we hosted with various marine organisations and members of the Rewilding Network, we looked to develop tools to support a whole-site approach for MPA management.

4: Ban bottom trawling in Marine Protected Areas and better regulate it outside these areas

Bottom trawling, a fishing method that involves dragging weighted nets across the seabed, is highly destructive for the seabed and the species relying on it. Yet, believe it or not, this practice still takes place in most MPAs. For these areas to be truly considered havens for nature, this damaging practice must be better regulated and banned from all sites designated to safeguard biodiversity.

5: Designate new Marine Protected Areas to support blue carbon capture and storage

It’s often overlooked that the ocean is a vital ally in tackling climate change, acting as a buffer that protects our atmosphere from its full effects. So far, the ocean has captured 90% of the excess heat generated by CO2 emissions and continues to capture and lock away carbon in its sediments — known as ​‘blue carbon’. 

Yet, marine ecosystems that store blue carbon remain largely unprotected in the UK. No MPAs have been designated specifically for the protection they can bring against climate change, leaving some blue carbon hotspots vulnerable to damage and the potential re-release of stored carbon in the atmosphere. Protecting these blue carbon hotspots is critical to ensure our seas continue to play their part in the greatest challenge of our time.

6: Establish 10% of the MPA network as core rewilding areas

Core rewilding areas focus on restoring and reinstating as wide a range of natural processes, habitats and missing species as possible. Such areas would provide much stricter protection to marine ecosystems, removing all pressures and allowing them to become the gold standard for marine rewilding and nature-led recovery in UK seas. Strict protection has consistently been proven to be the most effective way to restore marine ecosystems, yet less than 1% of UK seas currently meet these standards.

7: Develop and deliver a climate-smart fisheries strategy

In 2016, global fishing fleets released as much CO2 into the atmosphere as 51 coal-fired power plants [2]. Some fishing methods, particularly bottom trawling, have recently been shown to damage blue carbon stocks in the seabed, resulting in the re-release of 370 million metric tons of CO2 each year [3]. It’s time for decision-makers to support the transition to sustainable fishing practices and infrastructures that are better aligned with our climate needs. This means enabling the electrification of the fishing fleet and incentivising small-scale, community-led fisheries over industrial practices.

8: Shift towards community-led, low-impact nearshore fishing practices

Nearshore marine habitats are vital in supporting broader marine biodiversity. They act as nurseries and provide shelter for many species, including commercially significant ones. It’s also where kelp and seagrass habitats — particularly effective in capturing carbon and protecting us against the effects of climate change — thrive. The new government and relevant bodies across the nations need to support the expansion of byelaws regulating damaging fishing practices nearshore. This can only be done in collaboration with coastal communities, ensuring they’re provided alternatives for a just transition where needed.

9: Improve water quality

The figures highlighting the extent of the sewage overflow scandal across the UK remain consistently high year after year. Not only does this pose a serious health risk to water users, it’s also a severe threat to the marine environment. Sewage pollution causes the eutrophication of our seas, harming key ecosystems such as seagrass meadows. Recent reports have highlighted that pollution can cause carbon-storing seagrass meadows to become carbon emitters [4]. The first step to address this issue is to increase monitoring of combined sewage overflows and agricultural pollution, which can leach nitrogen, pesticides and other chemicals into our rivers. In turn, this will enable the appropriate enforcement of the existing legislation.

10: Reform marine spatial planning to be truly ecosystem-based

The Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) framework exists to spatially organise activities and developments across our seas. Although it was designed to leave enough space for nature to recover and thrive, it currently doesn’t deliver on this principle. To meet net-zero targets and give nature a chance to be wild and healthy, reforming the MSP framework is more important than ever, especially given the extensive industrialisation of our seas.