Richard Benyon, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Natural Environment and Fisheries, has met sea users linked with Irish Sea Conservation Zones.
The Warrington-based MCZ Project group is charged with collating information in relation to marine sites in the Irish Sea.
Benyon is due to make further visits to the three other English MCZ Project groups, Finding Sanctuary (South West), based in Topsham; Balanced Seas (South East), in Canterbury; and Net Gain (North Sea), in Hull.
The Marine Conservation Zone Project is being led by Natural England and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee to identify and recommend MCZs to the Government.
“It was good to meet the people who are involved in the Irish Sea Conservation Zones project and I look forward to seeing their recommendations on what areas should be given greater protection,” said Benyon after his first MCZ Project group visit.
“I encourage everyone with an interest in protecting the marine environment to get involved in this project. Our seas are home to some of the most diverse species on Earth and need just the same protection as our land.
“Creating marine conservation zones will protect marine species and habitats, from the rare and threatened, to the more common.”
The countdown to the provision of MCZs began with the passing of the Marine and Coastal Access Act late last year.
The MCZ Project groups are recording the views and recommendations of marine stakeholders, from divers and other leisure users to fishermen and extraction industries.
The general public can also contribute, either by contacting their regional MCZ Project group or by viewing maps and filling out questionnaires online at www.mczmapping.org.
Consultations run to June next year, before the MCZ Project groups report to the Government by October.
The Government aims to have MCZ designations completed by 2012.
One English MCZ has already been created, around Lundy at the mouth of the Bristol Channel. This was included as a stipulation of the Marine and Coastal Access Bill.
The establishment of MCZs in Scotland and Wales is being organised under separate legislation by the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly, working with associated research groups.
A nationwide campaign is being run by the Marine Conservation Society, which is inviting public recommendations for protected sites as well as seeking support for its own list of areas which should, in its view, be protected.
The MCS campaign, Your Seas Your Voice, can be viewed online at www.yourseasyourvoice.com.
Results of the MCS campaign will, in the case of English sites, be presented to the Government alongside the MCZ Project reports.
Related links
MCZ Projects explained
Irish Sea Conservation Zones
Finding Sanctuary
Balanced Seas
Net Gain
Lundy is an MCZ
MCS campaigns as Marine Bill goes through
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