Greenpeace has revealed its intention to deploy boulders in marine areas designated for wildlife protection to obstruct what it terms as “destructive industrial fishing”.
READ: THE CATCH
The organization criticized the British Government for inadequately safeguarding England’s marine protected areas (MPAs) from harmful activities such as bottom trawling, which damages habitats by dragging heavy nets along the seabed.
This initiative represents the continuation of Greenpeace’s underwater “boulder barriers” strategy, following the placement of concrete blocks in English MPAs over a three-year period starting in 2020 to shield rare species and ecosystems.
Protect
In 2020, post-Brexit, ministers gained enhanced powers to protect MPAs. However, bottom trawling has mostly persisted in these zones. Last year, the government proposed to halt bottom trawling in an additional 41 MPAs but dismissed the idea of a sweeping ban across all protected areas as “disproportionate”.
Greenpeace stated that despite consultations, ministers have yet to take action, and even if the plans are implemented, other harmful trawling methods would remain permissible in these areas.
Will McCallum, co-executive director at Greenpeace UK, commented: “Post-Brexit powers to fully protect marine protected areas have been available to successive governments for the last five years, but all have sat back and let destructive industrial fishing continue. Our oceans cannot wait any longer. If this government won’t protect our seas, we will.”
Brink
The group has persistently criticized the MPA process as “piecemeal,” noting that only certain fishing gear types are restricted in specific areas, rather than implementing comprehensive bans on all destructive fishing practices. According to Greenpeace, only 17 of the UK’s 78 offshore MPAs currently enjoy some level of protection from industrial fishing.
The location for the new underwater “boulder barrier” remains undisclosed. As part of its campaign, Greenpeace has sent a letter to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, endorsed by Stephen Fry, Paloma Faith, Simon Pegg, and various ocean conservation organizations.
The letter argues that industrial fishing vessels are driving UK seas “to the brink,” harming the economic prospects of coastal communities by depleting protected fish stocks and threatening wildlife such as sharks, dolphins, and seabirds.
Fallen
The letter states: “Years later, the places we created barriers are still protected while successive governments have failed to stop the rampant destruction of the vast majority of so-called marine protected areas. This leaves us no choice but to step in again. Using our ships, we will create more boulder barriers to repel destructive industrial trawlers and turn the UK’s weak marine protected areas into proper protected ocean sanctuaries.”
Paloma Faith expressed her support: “It’s hard to understand how this has been allowed to continue for so long. I’m grateful that Greenpeace are taking action where governments have repeatedly fallen short.”
Concrete
Stephen Fry remarked: “Permitting industrial trawlers to continue plundering areas of the ocean designated for protection is not merely absurd; it’s a complete failure of common sense. This shockingly destructive practice urgently needs to stop.”
Simon Pegg added: “Properly protecting our marine protected areas isn’t complicated. All the paperwork was done years ago and yet the Government is still delaying. I’m delighted that Greenpeace are taking the matter into their own hands and taking real, concrete, action – quite literally.”
A spokesperson from the Environment Department (Defra) stated: “We have strict legislation in place to protect our marine environment that also supports sustainable fishing to help industry and local communities thrive.”
This Author
Rebecca Speare-Cole is the sustainability reporter at Press Association.
