Trawling ban to protect ‘forest’ of seaweed

Campaign backed by Sir David Attenborough wins bylaw prohibiting fishing in extensive area off Sussex

TRAWLING has been banned along a 117 sq mile (304 sq km) stretch of the Sussex coast after a campaign to save its kelp forests, backed by Sir David Attenborough.

The Sussex Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority yesterday passed a bylaw prohibiting trawling year-round to protect the underwater forest, which sucks up massive amounts of planet-warming carbon, in what campaigners said was the first law of its kind to help cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The bylaw will now be passed to Theresa Villiers, the Environment Secretary, to sign off.

The Help Our Kelp campaign, the UK’S first seaweed rewilding initiative, was backed by 2,500 people to protect the forests, which once stretched along 25 miles (40km) from Selsey to Shoreham, and extended 2.5 miles into the sea.

But the vast majority have been lost over the last 40 years due to storm damage, and dredging boats dumping sediment soils in the seas.

Trawling tears kelp from the sea floor and prevents natural regeneration, and it is hoped that the ban will give the seaweed the space to recover.

Speaking last year, Sir David said their loss was a “tragedy”.

“This marine rewilding project, if approved, will ensure the Sussex seas remain healthy for generations to come, and could have a far-reaching impact for other parts of the UK coast.”

As well as acting as a carbon sink kelp forests are also a vital habitat and nursery for seahorses, cuttlefish, lobster, sea bream and bass.

Fisherman who once rowed out past the kelp have reported a drop in fish off the Sussex coast as the underwater forest has been depleted, according to the Marine Conservation Society.

Charles Clover, the executive director of the Blue Marine Foundation, which supported the campaign, said:

“This is an initiative that tackles climate change and overfishing impacts all at once, the first of its kind in the UK. This is exactly what we need to be doing in marine habitats all over the world.”

Kelp, which can grow up to 2ft a day, removes up to 20 times more carbon than the world’s forests per acre and could help the world meet targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. All plans to limit warming to 1.5C (34.7F) rely on removing carbon from the atmosphere.

The Sussex campaign comes amid a growing awareness of the value of seaweed. A study last year suggested that farming the plant and then burying the carbon captured at sea in 4 per cent of California’s coast could offset the state’s entire agriculture industry.