Not Planned

High resolution bathymetry data of Rockall and Helen's Reef collected 2011-2012 as part of the ROAME Offshore Fisheries and Conservation (OFFCON) project. Rockall, a tiny island just 19 metres high, sits on the very extremity of Scotland’s marine environment. Some 180 miles due west of St. Kilda, it is buffeted year round by the extreme winds and swell that the North Atlantic weather generates. As such, it is Scotland’s only truly offshore shallow water ecosystem. The islet of Rockall is actually the only part of vast plateau of submerged continent that remains above sea-level.

 

 

A Marine Protected Area network is designed to conserve a scientific selection of both marine biodiversity (species and habitats) and geodiversity (the variety of landforms and natural processes that underpin the marine landscapes), offering long-term support for the services our seas provide to society. In the 2012 "Report to the Scottish Parliament on Progress to Identify a Scottish Network of Marine Protected Areas", eight fisheries restriction areas were considered to contribute to the MPA network as existing "other area based measures".  Four of these areas overlap with Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and have now been removed from the list.

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The Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters (PFOW) supports a diverse marine economy and a vast majority of the area is used for multiple activities. This means there is a potential for competition and conflict. The Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters was chosen to pilot the development of a marine spatial plan to support sustainable management of the area’s seas. It aims to balance the needs of local communities and marine economic activities whilst protecting the environment on which they depend. The pilot Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan is being developed by a working group that includes Marine Scotland, Orkney Islands Council and Highland Council. This pilot Plan aims to put in place a planning policy framework in advance of statutory regional marine planning to support sustainable decision making on marine use and management. Through the process of producing the pilot Plan, there have been many lessons learned, which will be published shortly, to inform the preparation of future regional marine plans and the governance arrangements that could underpin Marine Planning Partnerships. It is also anticipated that the pilot Plan will establish a useful basis for the preparation of the two future regional marine plans for Orkney and the North Coast Scottish Marine Regions. This layer displays map 17 of the plan, which shows Renewable Energy in the PFOW.

*** Layer no longer available on NMPi. Information is contained in other layers. Page left for background only. ***

The Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters (PFOW) supports a diverse marine economy and a vast majority of the area is used for multiple activities. This means there is a potential for competition and conflict. The Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters was chosen to pilot the development of a marine spatial plan to support sustainable management of the area’s seas. It aims to balance the needs of local communities and marine economic activities whilst protecting the environment on which they depend. The pilot Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan is being developed by a working group that includes Marine Scotland, Orkney Islands Council and Highland Council. This pilot Plan aims to put in place a planning policy framework in advance of statutory regional marine planning to support sustainable decision making on marine use and management. Through the process of producing the pilot Plan, there have been many lessons learned, which will be published shortly, to inform the preparation of future regional marine plans and the governance arrangements that could underpin Marine Planning Partnerships. It is also anticipated that the pilot Plan will establish a useful basis for the preparation of the two future regional marine plans for Orkney and the North Coast Scottish Marine Regions. This layer displays map 16 of the plan, which shows Oil and Gas Hydrocarbon Pipleines in the PFOW.