Protecting seagrass in Priory Bay

Seagrass is a marine flowering plant that forms underwater meadows with numerous benefits to people and planet. Seagrass meadows provide a home for marine life, stabilise the seabed, help to improve water quality and clarity, take up carbon from the atmosphere, and support the majority of the UK’s commercial fish species.

Focussing on local pressures such as boating has the potential to have the most positive impact on seagrass. Mooring and anchoring over seagrass can cause damage to seagrass, causing scar-type marks in a meadow. This affects the meadow’s resilience to other stressors such as poor water quality.

By choosing sustainable boating options, such as utilising Advanced Mooring Systems, careful anchoring practices, and being aware of where seagrass is, boating and seagrass can co-exist with minimal negative impacts.

Protecting seagrass in Priory Bay will help the natural and restored seagrass meadow to flourish, thus benefiting local wildlife, water quality, and stabilising the seabed. If subtidal visitor moorings are explored, these would provide a safe anchorage for local boaters.

AMS use innovative and modern equipment optimised for local conditions and effective in dynamic sea environments. AMS use in inshore areas in the UK is relatively new, yet they are well-established in other countries around the world, with offshore AMS having been used for longer, e.g. for floating offshore wind turbines.

Traditional mooring systems and anchoring can damage sensitive seabed habitats (e.g. maerl beds and seagrass) through scouring from chains. This has long term impacts including the release of carbon, a reduction in commercial fish nursery habitat, and worsened water clarity.

Yes, AMS are designed bespokely for the local environmental conditions, e.g. tidal height and wave action, whilst future-proofing for worsening storm events in light of climate change. AMS are being used around the world in high energy environments with big tidal ranges, e.g. in Portland, Maine, new installed moorings in seagrass areas now must be AMS.

In the UK, trials have taken place in numerous locations to test the efficacy for protecting the seabed, e.g. in Cawsands Cornwall, Torbay, Salcombe and Lundy Island in Devon, on the Isle of Wight, Strangford Lough Northern Ireland, locations in Scotland, and in Studland Bay in Dorset. Modelling has also been undertaken to test the strength of AMS and ability to cope with different hydrodynamic conditions.

If any of the options taken forwards require it, navigation and safety will be ensured at all stages of the process. All required organisations will be engaged with alongside further community consultation to identify appropriate locations according to navigational hazards, tides, currents, and depth. Specification and design will be worked on with a local contractor experienced with similar projects in the local area. Oversight and management will ensure regular maintenance and servicing by local contractors.