Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020 launched

Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020 launched - JNCC

A new online platform which assesses the condition of Scotland’s marine environment and the human activity it supports has been launched.

More than 250 scientists have contributed to Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020, which brings together data from 183 studies to provide an up-to-date review of Scotland’s seas.

The assessments found that progress is being made to improve the health of Scotland’s seas. It also found that:

progress is being made to reduce the levels of nutrients and contaminants in our seas;
the marine economy is providing significant economic and social benefits to coastal communities while the growth of industries like offshore wind, wave and tidal energy are of increasing importance to the Scottish economy;
Marine Protected Areas and measures to tackle marine litter need more time to be fully effective;
climate change is the most critical factor affecting our seas and impacts on coastal flooding, erosion and marine species;
collaboration with coastal communities, industries, public authorities and international partners is essential to improve the state of Scotland’s Seas.

The findings will be used to inform the forthcoming review of Scotland’s National Marine Plan and the development of the Blue Economy Action Plan. They will also help inform future management of the Marine Protected Area network.

Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020 can be accessed via the Marine Scotland information portal. It is a Programme for Government commitment 2019/2020.