Scottish biodiversity strategy post-2020: statement of intent

Marine Biodiversity

In recent years we have made good progress in protecting the marine environment, particularly through the development of the Scottish Marine Protected Area (MPA) network. Earlier this year we designated Europe's Largest Marine Protected Area, of international significance, off the West Coast of Scotland. The further addition of four MPAs for mobile species, such as basking shark and minke whale, along with 12 sites for seabirds, in December 2020, has addressed some of the remaining gaps in our network, which now covers 37% of our waters. This is already above the proposed new global target being negotiated at the UN CBD for 2030, and contributes to the wider OSPAR network in the North East Atlantic.

We will continue to be a strong and influential partner on the international stage, and through OSPAR, our regional seas convention, we will work to protect and conserve the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic. In 2021, we will contribute to development and adoption of the new North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy. After adoption, we will play our role in implementing the actions to achieve a clean, healthy and biologically diverse North-East Atlantic Ocean, which is productive, and used sustainably.

The UK Marine Strategy helps implementation of the OSPAR Convention and EU marine environmental obligations. The UK Marine Strategy provides a comprehensive and collaborative framework for assessing, monitoring and taking action across our seas to achieve the UK's shared vision for clean, healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse seas. In 2021 we will consult on a new Programme of Measures to help progress towards good environmental status, addressing biodiversity concerns.

Scotland's National Marine Plan continues to provide a framework for sustainable development in Scotland's Seas. The second review of the plan will be undertaken in 2021. Regional marine planning allows for national planning policies, including those for biodiversity, to be adapted to reflect local circumstances and issues. To date, three Regional Marine Planning Partnerships have been established – Shetland, Clyde and Orkney, and these partnerships are working to develop their first regional plans. The Scottish Government will continue to support these partnerships, and progress work to establish further partnerships in other regions.

The vision set out in our National Marine Plan takes a holistic Blue Economy approach. The Blue Economy Action Plan referenced in this year's Programme for Government will contribute to economic recovery through sustainable growth based on effective shared stewardship of our rich marine natural capital, helping Scotland to "build back better" from the Covid pandemic. Early thinking on the Action Plan has identified four emerging key outcomes: inclusive Blue Economy growth; creation of resilient places; contributing to a just transition to net zero; and improving marine biodiversity and the environment. The National Marine Plan, and the regional plans that flow from it, are key long-term delivery mechanisms for realising these outcomes, and next year's review of the National Marine Plan will consider what changes might be necessary to best deliver our aspirations for the Blue Economy.

We believe that supporting biodiversity in our seas is vitally important, alongside taking account of the wider ecosystem when developing and delivering policies and in our decision-making processes. The fishing industry has much to offer,

and we want to ensure it can grow sustainably and make a positive contribution to our economy and our communities. But we also understand the importance of balancing fishing activities against ensuring that the right protections are in place for the marine environment. We will address these issues as part of our Future Fisheries Management Strategy which will set out our approach to managing Scotland's fisheries in a responsible and sustainable way.

We will complete the delivery of our commitment to create a coherent network of MPAs including developing proposals for appropriate fisheries management measures and our approach to monitoring. The work on vulnerable PMFs will support the Scottish MPA network through providing connectivity between habitats (and is equivalent to work on ecological connectivity on land).

We will help provide a mechanism for taking forward project work on recovery and enhancement of Scotland's seas through development of the Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund. The Fund will enable users benefiting from Scotland's rich natural marine resource to voluntarily re-invest in the health and biodiversity of our seas, thereby safeguarding and enhancing that natural resource to support the sustainable growth of those industries into the future, and in turn helping to build a wellbeing economy for Scotland's coastal communities.

In 2021, we will also consult on conservation strategies for dolphins, porpoises, minke whale and seabirds. This strategic approach will for the first time bring together actions to optimise the conservation prospects for these iconic species.

All this work will be underpinned by Scotland's Marine Assessment 2020, to be published shortly, which will provide a comprehensive and rigorous evidence base on the state of Scotland' seas for informing future policies and actions on marine biodiversity.

Wild Atlantic salmon is an iconic species for Scotland, and our world-renowned salmon fisheries symbolise the close link between biodiversity, the rural economy and mental health and wellbeing. The decline in salmon returning to Scotland's rivers is of great concern, which is why we are developing a Wild Salmon Strategy to protect and enhance wild salmon stocks.