Action required to protect at risk marine areas

A leading research scientist has called for immediate action to safeguard Marine Protected Areas (MPA) across Scotland.

Alison Lomax, director at Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust on the Isle of Mull, said the marine environment was at risk. The trust has collected data on creatures such as whales for more than two decades.

“The evidence exists to protect important feeding and breeding grounds for these charismatic animals,” she said. “With increasing pressure from human activity and the effects of climate change, we need to act now.”