Greenpeace UK’s plans to drop more boulders in the South West Deeps (East) marine protected area (MPA) to prevent destructive industrial fishing have been blocked by the government.
The environmental campaign group had announced its intention to load more boulders onto the ship Arctic Sunrise in Poole Quay to extend the barrier that it created on 1 September.
The boulders are being placed on the seabed to make it impossible for bottom-trawling to take place in one of the most heavily fished areas of the MPA.
According to Greenpeace, the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) threatened Poole Harbour Commission with legal action if they allowed the boulders into port.
It said the gates to Bulwark Quay where the ship is berthed were also locked, and the haulage company transporting the boulders also received a legal threat.
Greenpeace UK’s Head of Oceans Will McCallum said the MMO “has put an astonishing amount of energy into trying to stop marine protection”.
He said, “They are using intimidation tactics to block ocean defenders, while brazenly allowing industrial fishing vessels to destroy seabed habitats in our so-called marine protected areas.
“The MMO is failing the UK’s small-scale fishermen. Their livelihoods are quickly becoming unviable; many are returning home with empty nets while huge factory boats scoop up all the fish in sight. It’s no wonder that two-thirds of our fish species are in decline.”
On 1 September, 18 limestone boulders, each weighing up to 1.4 tonnes, were placed on the South West Deeps’ seabed, with the action supported by celebrities including Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall, Simon Pegg and Stephen Fry. Their names were stencilled onto the boulders before being dropped into the ocean.
