With Suffolk having 50 miles of breath-taking coastline what better opportunity to talk about marine conservation and celebrate our amazing North Sea wildlife.
In 2019, Suffolk had it’s first designated Marine Conservation Zone (MCZs) in Suffolk, Orford Inshore which forms part of a national network of 91 MCZs in England, creating a blue belt of protected marine habitat around the country - helping our target of 30% of land and sea connected and protected for nature’s recovery by 2030.
The next stage nationally for MCZs is to introduce management programmes and as of 13th June 2022 four byelaws have come into effect, banning damaging fishing activity from four Marine Protected Areas. Going one step further, in 2021, the Government agreed to designate a number of Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) which will prohibit all destructive activities. Three of these five pilot sites are in the North Sea.
The North Sea boasts some of the ocean's most majestic and intriguing animals from thornback rays to beadlet anemones. At Latitude Festival we met with over 2,232 visitors, quizzing them on beach combing finds, making mini rafts, dipping for aquatic invertebrates and creating colourful willow marine sculptures.