Chamber and committees

Any Marine Protected Area (MPA) proposal brought forward will complement the species protection already afforded to all species of cetaceans by virtue of being European Protected Species under the EU Habitats Directive.

Three species of cetaceans are listed as MPA search features - Risso's dolphin, white-beaked dolphin and minke whale. To ensure that important life stages of these species are considered for protection, MPA search locations are currently being assessed against the Scottish MPA Selection Guidelines.

Any Marine Protected Area (MPA) proposal brought forward will complement the species protection already afforded to Basking Shark through the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended.

The basking shark is listed as a MPA search feature.

One search location has been identified and is currently being assessed to identify if there are any habitats critical for the species.

As part of this, further research is being undertaken;

(a) through tagging basking sharks within the MPA search location this summer to understand more about their fine-scale distribution and use of the area and

(b) to gain a greater understanding of the habitats that support basking shark in this location through data modelling.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-08163 on 9 July 2012. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Examples of wider seas measures are marine planning, environmental impact assessment, and strategic environmental assessment. In addition to these, wider seas measures contained within sectoral policies and plans can play their part in improving the status of marine habitats and species.

Reformation of the Common Fisheries Policy and implementation of Inshore Fisheries Group management plans should provide environmental benefit. Measures under development to deliver good environmental status by 2020 under the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive should also provide benefit to marine species and habitats. The Scottish Government is also developing a marine litter strategy.

We will undertake a consultation on a draft marine litter strategy in the autumn.

It is envisaged that the strategy will build on existing measures for monitoring levels of marine and coastal litter which will assist with progress towards achieving the targets of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

Scotland’s marine Atlas identified a number of pressures on marine habitats and species, including changes in the physical and chemical qualities of the water, disturbance of the seabed, underwater noise, recreational disturbance, and coastal development. A number of initiatives are underway which will help to address these issues.

The National Marine Plan will include objectives and policies to contribute to managing and minimising the impact of pressures identified in the Atlas, including steering damaging uses away from sensitive areas. It will also include ecosystem objectives and policies to support general ecosystem health and functioning and to further conservation measures. Environmental protection will be incorporated into decision making.

Targets and indicators are currently under development to achieve Good Environmental Status by 2020 under the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive, and a programme of measures to achieve these targets must be in place by 2016. Marine planning provides one of several mechanisms to implement the measures once in place.

The Marine Nature Conservation Strategy for Scotland outlines objectives and measures to meet strategic aims for conservation. It focuses on a three pillar approach - species measures, site protection measures, and other initiatives that make a contribution to nature conservation, and which can be incorporated in decision making. Marine planning is one example.

Marine features in special areas of conservation (SAC) in Scotland are included in Scottish Natural Heritage’s Site Condition Monitoring rolling six year programme. The frequency at which an individual feature will be monitored is determined by the risk/vulnerability of the feature type across the designated sites suite with higher risk/more vulnerable features being monitored more frequently. Site condition monitoring has not taken place at proposed or candidate SACs to date.

For the suite of Special Areas of Conservation within territorial waters 52 designated features are in favourable condition and five are in unfavourable condition.

The Special Protection Areas which were classified in 2009 in the marine environment have not reached their first six yearly site condition but at the time of site classification Scottish Natural Heritage considered site condition monitoring requirements and concluded that monitoring of the breeding colony was sufficient.

Sites in offshore waters adjacent to Scotland are currently either proposed or candidate Special Areas of Conservation (SACs). Scientific data used to recommend the site to the EC are different to that required to assess the site condition. Condition of the sites at the time of their submission to the EC is estimated using information on marine activities that might damage the features of the site, and the sensitivity of the habitats or species to such activities. Further information can be found on the JNCC website http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-4534. Please note that some of these documents are draft versions and are currently being updated ahead of their formal release to public authorities.

<>I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-08158 on 2 July 2012. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/MAQASearch/QAndMSearch.aspx.

<>The current term of appointment for the Chair of Scottish Natural Heritage ends on 31 July 2012. Details of an extension to this appointment from 1 August 2012 to 28 February 2014 were announced by the Scottish Government on 25 May. A copy of the news release is available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2012/05/SNHchair250512.

We expect to commence arrangements for the appointment of a successor in the autumn of 2013.