Publication - Impact assessment
Southern Trench Marine Protected Area: business and regulatory impact assessment
An assessment of the business and regulatory impacts of designating the Southern Trench Marine Protected Area.
Annex A: Summary of Ecosystem Benefits that can be derived from designation of Southern Trench MPA
| Summary of Ecosystem Services Benefits arising from the Designation and Management of the Site as an MPA (2019 to 2038) | STR | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Services | Relevance to Site |
On-site / off-site |
Baseline Level | Estimated Impacts of Management | Value Weighting | Scale of Benefits | Confidence | ||
| Lower | Intermediate | Upper | |||||||
| Fish and shellfish for human consumption | Moderate, burrowed mud contributes to the food web | On-site and off-site | Stocks not at MSY | Low, recovery of fish stocks possible in long term from protection of benthic features | Moderate, recovery of fish stocks possible in medium to long term dye to extent of protection of benthic features | Moderate, fish stocks have commercial value | Low – Moderate | Moderate | |
| Fish and shellfish for non-human consumption | Stocks reduced from potential maximum | ||||||||
| Climate regulation | Minimal | On-site | Minimal | Nil | Moderate | Nil | High | ||
| Waste breakdown/ detoxification | Minimal | On site | Minimal | Nil | Low | Nil | High | ||
| Non-use value of natural environment | Moderate–High, features such as minke whale, and contribution of the site to MPA network, have non-use value (Kenter et al. 2013). | On-site and off-site | Non-use value of the site may decline | Low – Moderate, designation, and protection of features from decline and/or allowing some recovery | Moderate, range of features contributes to halting decline of marine biodiversity | Low – Moderate | Moderate, extent of features, response to management scenarios, and value to society all uncertain | ||
| Recreation | Moderate, wildlife tourism and recreation (including angling/ diving, Kenter et al. 2013) at site | On-site | Recreation value of the site may decline | Low, protection of features of site that contribute to recreation | Moderate, protection of features of site that contribute to recreation from decline, and/or allowing some recovery | Moderate, recreation and tourism support jobs, and are valued (including angling/ diving, Kenter et al. 2013). | Low – Moderate | Low – Moderate, extent of change from management scenarios uncertain | |
| Research and Education | Moderate, features subject to scientific study (e.g. enclosed (glacial) seabed basin) | On-site | Features may decline | Minimal | Low – Moderate, protection of geological features improve future research opportunities. Designation may play role in communication management needs. | Low–Moderate for studied features | Low – Moderate | Low – Moderate, extent to which research uses site in future uncertain | |
| Total value of changes in ecosystem services | Minimal for lower scenario. Low for intermediate scenario, Moderate for upper scenario, mainly based on recreation and non-use value evidence in Kenter et al. (2013) | Low – Moderate | Moderate | ||||||
Contact
Email: marine_conservation@gov.scot
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