Protected seabed damaged by fishing is showing signs of recovery

The campaign group Greenpeace has also announced that it intends to take more direct action to better protect MPAs further out to sea.

It will use one of its ships to drop boulders onto the seabed creating physical barriers to restrict access.

It has not said which sites will be targeted but it has previously targeted offshore sites in the southern North Sea, the English Channel, and off the south-west coast of England.

Fishing boats tend to avoid areas containing large rocks because they can catch onto nets and other gear.

The UK government dropped a legal case it had taken against Greenpeace in an attempt to stop the direct action.

The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation insists that “everyone wants healthy seas, abundant marine life and thriving coastal communities.”

Chief executive Elspeth Macdonald said the call to ban trawling and dredging in 30% of inshore waters “is based on an arbitrary target rather than scientific evidence, and takes little account of the diversity of Scotland’s coastline, seabed habitats, fisheries and fishing communities.”

She believes the fishing industry is now heavily regulated and that management measures need to be “proportionate”.