Today (Monday 22 March) the new Nearshore Trawling Byelaw has been announced. This is a major milestone for Sussex and we are thrilled. As a result of this byelaw, trawling will be excluded from the West Sussex Nearshore waters out to 4km. Our local and national decision makers have made real space for nature.
We know that kelp is just hanging on in small patches in this area where it was abundant in only recent memory, the declines taking place since the late 1980s. We are determined to enable the kelp forest to restore and recover across this huge area of of Sussex coast.
How did we get here?
The byelaw was signed off locally by the Sussex Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (IFCA) board exactly 15 months ago, and since then, alongside Brexit and a Pandemic it has been with our national bodies - The Marine Management Organisation and Defra - and finally with the Secretary of State to sign off.
From the original Sussex consultation in 2019, momentum was unprecedented. Conservationists and others have been passionate about supporting the Sussex IFCA byelaw process. Starting with the inspirational Big Wave Productions producing a beautiful film explaining the Byelaw which Sir David Attenborough narrated. This resulted in an unprecedented 2,500 people showing their support for the byelaw - the local fishery statutory process. The Help Our Kelp Partnership formed, with Sussex Wildlife Trust working alongside the Blue Marine Foundation, the Marine Conservation Society, Big Wave Productions and Dr Ian Hendy from the University of Portsmouth. This has demonstrated to us yet again, how powerful it is to bring together the expertise of different organisations. Together we have gained the backing of our Sussex MPs, Ministers and Senior Government Advisors, many of whom have approached the Secretary of State directly on our behalf to show their support. Locally and nationally this has been accompanied by many letters encouraging the signing of the byelaw, going straight to the Secretary of State himself. Thank you to all those of you who supported us with this.
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Posted On: 23/03/2021