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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 23h

Ahead of our #DivedNotDredged event this evening, our Sustainable Seafood Officer, Andrea Ladas, spoke to BBC Orkney about the opportunity to ask MSPs to protect the valuable sustainable fisheries around Scotland.

🎙️ Tune into the episode to hear more: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Around Orkney - 08/10/2025 - BBC Sounds

News, features and weather for Orkney, including the daily community diary.

www.bbc.co.uk

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 2d

This OEP investigation could be a turning point for UK seas but whether it leads to change is another question.

Read more in our latest blog ➡️ openseas.org.uk/news/fail-to...

Fail to plan, plan to fail: Defra, the OEP and the fate of our seas

The UK’s environmental watchdog - the Office for Environmental Protection - has raised the alarm over Defra’s failure to take adequate steps to protect the UK marine environment, and not a minut

openseas.org.uk

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 2d

The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) recently identified “possible serious failures” in how Defra is managing UK seas 🌊🧵

📊 7 out of 15 targets remain unmet.
⚠️ Another 6 are only “partially met” or “uncertain”.
🐟 Evidence shows reckless harm is continuing & protections are not working.

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 3d

When scallop dredgers enter MPAs they’re not just damaging habitats, in this case, they’re extracting resources from communities that have worked hard to ensure the MPA is working.

This means local benefits are often lost & the protection status of the MPA is undermined.

📺 Watch the full story ⬇️⛴️

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 6d

"This incident shows that the dredge industry is out of control and measures to establish a sustainable management system for it are not working."

Read our thoughts on the recent scallop dredging within a Scottish MPA and the full article here: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Reef concerns after dredgers filmed in protected seas

Scottish government says it's investigating but concerned locals fear enormous damage has been caused

www.bbc.co.uk

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 6d

While Ireland has banned big trawlers from its inshore waters, the Scottish Government has failed to give the same protection to small-scale fisheries and vital marine habitats.

Read the full article 📰 theskipper.ie/from-1-octob...

6 Mile Trawling Ban Becomes Legal

From 1 October 2026, trawling activity by fishing vessels over 18 metres inside the 6 nm zone will be prohibited.

theskipper.ie

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 7d

That really puts the timescale into perspective doesn't it 😖

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 7d

“We need Scottish and UK ministers to end overfishing and reform quota allocation so that public fish stocks deliver genuine public benefit and provide genuine security.”

Read the full article on @icesmarine.bsky.social latest mackerel advice here: www.heraldscotland.com/news/nationa...

Mackerel fishing should be cut by 70 to prevent stock collapse, scientists say

Conservationists have called for urgent action to stop the collapse of stocks in the north-east Atlantic.

www.heraldscotland.com

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Reposted by Open Seas

Scottish Environment LINK @scotlink.bsky.social · 7d

'We know protection works' - Calum Duncan, convenor of our marine group, spoke to @parliament.scot
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee this morning about fisheries management measures for offshore marine protected areas.

Contains information licensed under the Scottish Parliament Copyright Licence.

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 8d

New advice warns mackerel catches must be cut by 70% to prevent collapse.

We need Scottish & UK ministers to end overfishing and reform quota allocation so public fish stocks deliver genuine public benefit.

🔗 Hear our Director's take here & read the full article: www.standard.co.uk/news/science...

Mackerel fishing should be cut by 70% to prevent stock collapse, scientists say

Conservationists have called for urgent action to stop the collapse of stocks in the north-east Atlantic.

www.standard.co.uk

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 8d

This is an important moment to highlight the many reasons why effective management of MPAs matters:

1️⃣ To safeguard seabed habitats

2️⃣ To support sustainable fisheries

3️⃣ To deliver on Scotland’s environmental commitments

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 8d

This morning our Director, Phil Taylor, is giving evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs and Islands Committee on the proposed protections for Scotland’s offshore Marine Protected Areas 🌊

📺 Watch live NOW: www.scottishparliament.tv/meeting/rura...

Rural Affairs and Islands Committee | Scottish Parliament TV

www.scottishparliament.tv

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 9d

Register below to attend and remind politicians of the benefits of rewilding — for nature, communities, climate and the long-term health of Scotland: bit.ly/3GYBRs9

#RewildingNation

Green Means Go! Stop Stalling, Start Rewilding | Holyrood Stunt | Oct 1st

A powerful visual stunt outside Holyrood to demand action and expose the barriers to a wilder Scotland

bit.ly

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 9d

With just months to go until the 2026 Scottish elections, now is the time to call on MSPs to prioritise rewilding commitments 📃🌱

That's why at the Scottish Parliament tomorrow,
@scotrewilding.bsky.social are highlighting the barriers to rewilding and how the next government can remove them.

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 9d

Places like the Forth show how abundance of nature can co-exist in places used by industry & people - providing there's a good plan. Thanks to Graham Simpson MSP for joining us on the water today to explore the link between life & the use of our seas & the need to properly plan how they’re managed.

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 12d

With our ROV, we're able to document fragile habitats, spot signs of damage, and track recovery (or not) where protections are in place. This kind of evidence is vital to ensure our seas are properly managed and protected.

Watch to the end for a surprise appearance 🐬⬆️

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 12d

How we sometimes spend our Fridays at Open Seas 🛥️🌊

A big thank you to MSP Miles Briggs for joining us out on the water today, and for taking the time to learn more about how surveying the seabed helps us better understand what’s happening to Scotland's seas.

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 13d

@icesmarine.bsky.social advice "illustrates that years of taking too many fish and failing to rein in the ongoing problem of discarding juvenile fish and fish beyond quota have pushed this stock into serious trouble”.

Read our response to the 'zero catch' advice ⬇️
www.insider.co.uk/news/fisherm...

Fishermen fear ‘zero catch’ cod recommendation could be ‘fleet-ending’

International advisory body calls for no catching of cod in the northern shelf of the North Sea during 2026

www.insider.co.uk

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 13d

Find out more about our work at openseas.org.uk

Open Seas

We're the Open Seas, we're interested in protecting our seas and the things that live in them. Check out how we are working to improve the sustainability of fishing and what you can do to dig into del...

openseas.org.uk

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 13d

We're out on the streets and up on the screens! Our billboards are still live across the UK (in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Newcastle, London, and Southampton) - have you seen one yet?

Snap a pic and tag us if you do 📸📰🦞

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 14d

Listen to our Director, Phil Taylor, speak to @stv.news about ending this cod crisis (see above) 📺🗣️⬆️

Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 14d

Some question the science but fisheries management must be evidence-based, not anecdote-led.

So if the industry believes stocks are healthier than the science shows, then cameras recording catches are the way to prove it.

Read the ICES advice here: ices-library.figshare.com/articles/rep...

Cod (Gadus morhua) in Subarea 4, divisions 6.a and 7.d, and Subdivision 20 (North Sea, West of Scotland, eastern English Channel and Skagerrak)

Northern shelf cod consists of three substocks (Northwestern, Southern, and Viking) which mix and are caught together. ICES advises that when the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) approach and precautio...

ices-library.figshare.com

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 14d

@icesmarine.bsky.social estimates 18% of all cod caught in 2025 will be discarded at sea, including a huge numbers of juveniles.

That is a colossal waste of future catches & of the ecosystem. Ministers must act now to kickstart recovery using the pre-existing post-Brexit sustainable fishing laws.

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 14d

It is extremely alarming that the latest scientific advice recommends a complete stop to cod fishing across the Northern Shelf for 2026.

Years of poor management have allowed overfishing and ignored the discarding of juvenile cod which has pushed this stock into crisis 🧵🌊🐟

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Open Seas @open-seas.bsky.social · 15d

🌱 1 WEEK TO GO 🌱

Scotland could be the world’s first #RewildingNation — but only if we break down the barriers holding back nature recovery.

Join the call at the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday 1st October 👉 bit.ly/3GYBRs9

#RewildScotland