The film targets the practice of bottom trawling in UK marine protected areas (MPAs), with research by Blue Marine determining that 74% of England’s inshore MPAs and 92% in Scotland still permit this practice, including in fragile habitats such as seagrass meadows.
Ahead of the United Nations Ocean Conference in France, Blue Marine Foundation, Only One and Oceana UK are calling on the UK Government to impose an immediate ban on bottom trawling in all UK marine protected areas.
“This shockingly destructive practice continues even in the UK’s protected areas,” Fry said. “I witnessed the waste firsthand and was absolutely appalled. It is morally corrupt to allow what should be thriving ecological wildernesses to be reduced to shells of destruction. Bottom trawling in marine protected areas must be banned now.”
James added: “As a keen diver I’ve long been captivated by the ocean and been horrified by the impact humans are having on it. Having had a load of by-catch dumped on me, it really drove home just how grotesque and devastating the practice of bottom trawling is. It was deeply unsettling but I was glad to do it if it helps drive real change.”
Blue Marine Foundation Communications Director Jo Coumbe said: “Making this film was an eye-opener, even for the seasoned conservationists. When we first saw the by-catch it was just devastating to see – almost unbelievably so. Baby sharks, rays, cuttlefish, angler fish – nothing gets away. The by-catch sourced to create this film was made up of 27 different species, including five species of shark or ray and numerous juveniles. Nothing is safe from the nets of a trawler.”
