Fisheries management measures within Scottish Offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) - Sustainability Appraisal

3 Approach to the Sustainability Appraisal

3.1 Introduction

The following sections set out a brief overview of the processes used in the SEA and SEIA. Full details are provided in the SEA⁷ and SEIA⁸.

3.2 SEA approach

The SEA has built on the following previous and ongoing SEAs of relevant Scottish Government marine conservation work:

• The designation of Nature Conservation MPAs (assessed in 2013)^[28];
• Previous round of fisheries management measures for inshore MPAs which were assessed in 2014^[29],[30] and new round of measures which are due to be assessed for remaining inshore MPAs where these are not already in place, as well as PMFs identified as most at risk from bottom-contacting mobile fishing gear outwith MPAs;
• The designation of an additional suite of marine SPAs (assessed in 2018)^[31];
• The designation of four additional MPAs (assessed in 2019)^[32]; and
• The designation of a deep sea marine reserve as an offshore MPA (assessed in 2019)^[33].

The SEA presents a high level and qualitative account of the potential environmental effects that might be expected to arise from the proposed fisheries management measures under Option 1 for offshore MPAs and a reasonable alternative (Option 2).

The SEA objectives that were developed to reflect the proposed scope of the SEA and the environmental protection objectives are set out in Table 3.

Information about the existing marine environment was used to inform the assessment and define the SEA objectives. The assessment identified the individual and collective effects of the proposals on a number of topics scoped into the SEA, specifically Biodiversity, Flora and Fauna, Soil (geodiversity), Water (environmental status of marine region) and Climatic Factors (carbon cycling, storage and sequestration). In order to recognise the interlinkages of these SEA topics, these were collectively given consideration under the overarching Biodiversity, Flora and Fauna topic.

The SEA identified beneficial and adverse effects, including ‘cumulative’ effects. Based on the previous SEA work that has been undertaken on proposed fisheries management measures, it is considered that the scope of potentially significant environmental effects associated with the proposed offshore management measures is largely limited to beneficial effects to the MPAs, spill-over benefits beyond the location of MPAs and potential negative effects as a result of the displacement of fishing activities to other areas which do not have restrictions either within the MPAs or to areas outwith the protected sites. In terms of displacement of activities, there may also be a potential indirect intensification of other activities in MPAs that are not targeted by the proposed management measures, namely an increase in the use of other fishing gear not targeted by the proposed measures.

Reasonable alternatives

In line with the 2004 Regulations, there is a requirement to consider reasonable alternatives that fulfil the objective of the plan as part of the SEA. The reasonable alternatives that have been identified as part of the development of the management proposals to meet conservation objectives have been assessed. These reasonable alternatives represent an ‘alternative option’ (Option 2) whereby the protection afforded by the proposed management measures are extended across the entire site where this is not already proposed under the measures developed through the CFP process (Option 1), (e.g. gears targeted by the proposed management measures are excluded from the entire area of the MPA).

3.3 SEIA approach

The methodology applied has built on previous marine socio-economic assessments for MPAs, particularly the assessment of Scottish Nature Conservation MPAs^[34], the draft assessment of phase 2 fisheries management measures in Nature Conservation MPAs, the assessment of four new Nature Conservation MPAs^[35], and the assessment of a proposed deep sea marine reserve^[36]. It is consistent with Better Regulation Executive guidance on impact assessment, the Green Book methodology^[37] for economic assessment and Scottish Government guidance on Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA)^[38].

The SEIA sought to estimate the effects of the proposed fisheries management measures for offshore MPAs both at site level and for the proposals as a whole in terms of:

• The potential costs to commercial fishing in terms of the value of landings affected, impact on gross value added, and employment;
• The knock-on impacts on supply chains, both upstream (through application of economic multipliers) and downstream (through consideration of where landings affected are made, and potential impact on the processing sector);
• The distribution of economic costs (by location, fishing groups and social groups);
• The social impacts across different communities (which could be locations, sectors, or other users) resulting from the economic costs. This considers the size and type of impacts on fisheries and employment, and the characteristics of impacted communities (e.g. remote islands), and their significance;
• The potential costs to the public sector; and
• The potential costs and benefits to ecosystem services.

The methodology, described in detail within the SEIA report⁸ covers:

• General project assumptions;
• Establishing a baseline against which impacts can be assessed;
• Assessment of costs and benefits, including:
  • impacts on commercial fisheries (turnover, Gross Value Added (GVA) and employment);
  • distributional analysis and consequent social impacts;
  • impacts on the public sector; and
  • impacts on ecosystem services;
• Approach to assessment of cumulative and combined impacts.

Lower and upper estimates were developed for each site to assess the potential range of impacts (see box below), reflecting the two possible management options that may be applied and the potential for displacement of fishing effort to result in landings that compensate for the landings lost from the site. The estimates have been used to assess the potential range in impacts associated with designation of the proposed sites.

The assessment period for considering the impacts of designation is 60 years, in line with HM Treasury Green Book guidance. Within this timeframe, costs to industry are quantified and valued over a period of 20 years. Costs and Gross Value Added (GVA) impacts are expressed in 2022 prices using the latest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) deflator data. Monetary impacts have been discounted over the assessment period using a 3.5% discount rate in line with the Green Book. Employment impacts have not been discounted so that the full impact on employment is clear.