SCOTLAND’S ocean is a place of breathtaking beauty and incredible biodiversity.
From the shimmering kelp forests that sway beneath the waves to the seals basking on the rocky coasts, our marine environment showcases the unique and awe-inspiring natural beauty of our country.
Yet, as a young person deeply invested in the future of our country, I’m increasingly frustrated by the slow pace of progress in protecting Scotland’s seas.
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Our marine environment is at a critical point, facing threats such as overfishing, habitat destruction and pollution. How we respond now will impact the health of our oceans for decades to come.
The current framework for marine conservation suffers from weak regulation, inconsistent enforcement and a lack of clear, ambitious goals, making it ineffective in tackling the challenges we face.
One of the main strategies used to protect marine life is the creation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). These are designated sections of our seas where human activities are limited to prevent damage to habitats and species. MPAs are meant to allow ecosystems to recover and thrive by reducing harmful activities like overfishing and unsustainable resource use.
Species such as cod, haddock and vulnerable seabed habitats like kelp forests and coral reefs benefit significantly from well-managed MPAs
Despite the designation of around 37% of Scotland’s waters as MPAs, there are significant shortcomings in their implementation. Many still allow damaging activities like bottom-trawling and dredging practices that directly undermine conservation efforts.
An important element of conservation in MPAs is fisheries management. Fisheries management involves regulating and monitoring fishing activities to ensure that fish populations remain healthy and that ecosystems are not damaged by overfishing or destructive practices.
This can include restrictions on when and where fishing can happen, limiting the types of gear used, and setting quotas on how many fish can be caught. Scotland’s MPAs do include some fisheries management measures, such as banning bottom-trawling in certain areas, but these measures vary in their strictness and enforcement.
As of 2024, only 27 MPAs have specific fisheries measures in place, and measures for additional sites are still being developed, leaving much of Scotland’s marine biodiversity unprotected from destructive activities.
This delay has led to a scenario where these MPAs are considered “paper parks” – areas that exist in name only, providing little real protection for marine habitats and species.
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Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020 revealed that only 31% of MPAs had favourable conservation status for their designated features. These features include specific habitats, species or ecological characteristics that the MPA is intended to protect.
What we should adopt is ecosystem-based fisheries management. Ecosystem-based fisheries management goes beyond traditional fisheries management by considering the entire ecosystem, not just the fish being caught. It involves managing the interactions between fish species, their habitats and human activities like fishing.
The goal is to maintain the health of the marine environment as a whole, ensuring that ecosystems can continue to support fish populations and the communities that depend on them for the long term.
Ecosystem-based fisheries management takes into account the broader environmental impacts of fishing, such as the damage caused to seabeds by trawling, the importance of protecting breeding grounds, and the role that healthy fish populations play in maintaining the balance of marine ecosystems.
These are the kinds of measures we need to implement in Scotland to ensure a sustainable future for our marine environment.
One of the most frustrating misconceptions is that we must choose between conservation and economic growth. This false dichotomy is harmful, as it undermines the potential for sustainable solutions and is also just flat-out wrong.
In reality, conservation and economic growth go hand in hand, and there is a growing body of evidence that protecting marine ecosystems can benefit both the environment and the economy.
For example, a meta-analysis studying the effectiveness of MPAS published in the ICES Journal of Marine Science (2018) shows that the biomass of whole fish assemblages (the total weight of all fish species in an area) in no-take MPAs (areas where no fishing or extractive activities are allowed) is, on average, 670% greater than in adjacent unprotected areas and 343% greater than in partially-protected MPAs.
This growth in fish biomass and the protection of the marine ecosystem has led to the enhancement of local fisheries and the creation of new jobs in ecotourism.
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Scotland can look to other countries that have taken the lead in integrating MPAs with ecosystem-based fisheries management as models for success.
Norway and Australia have both demonstrated that protecting marine ecosystems and sustaining fisheries are not mutually exclusive goals.
Norway implemented ecosystem-based fisheries management in the Barents Sea, a vital fishing ground, where careful management of fish stocks led to the recovery of cod populations and ensured sustainable fishing practices.
Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is another success story, where ecosystem-based fisheries management has been used to protect vital marine habitats, such as coral reefs, while allowing well-regulated fishing.
These efforts have resulted in healthier ecosystems, increased fish biomass and thriving local economies. Scotland can, and should, follow these examples.
So, what can you do to support Scotland’s ocean?
Contact your local MSP and demand that stronger protections for Scotland’s seas are put in place. Call for the proper enforcement of MPAs and the adoption of ecosystem- based fisheries management, so that these protected areas truly serve their purpose.
These steps will help marine ecosystems recover and thrive, ensuring that industries dependent on healthy oceans, like fishing and ecotourism, can continue to grow.
The real risk we face isn’t in taking steps toward stronger protections – it’s in doing nothing. Scotland’s marine environment is one of our country’s most valuable assets, and it is up to us to ensure its protection.
As a young person, I don’t want to inherit a Scotland whose oceans are in decline.
The question isn’t whether we can afford to protect our seas – it’s whether we can afford not to.
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