Orkney Islands Regional Marine Plan
This plan covers the management of the Scottish Marine Region for the Orkney Islands. It guides and supports decision making for development and use of the sea, and represents the second tier of marine planning, following on from the National plan.
Appendix 6: Wild Seaweed Harvesting
A6.1 There is a growing interest in small-scale wild seaweed harvesting in Orkney. Hand harvesting of seaweed for any form of monetary or other reward from Crown foreshore or seabed in Scotland requires a licence from CES. CES issues licenses for hand harvesting, as well as Foreshore Harvesting Options for larger-scale nearshore harvesting[145]. Permission from the owner is always required whether wild seaweed is harvested from Crown or private foreshore.
A6.2 At the time of writing this Plan, large-scale commercial seaweed harvesting does not take place in Orkney. A marine licence from Marine Directorate– Licensing Operations Team may be required to remove seaweed from the seabed using a vessel or vehicle.
A6.3 Removals from the seabed by hand, that is where no vehicle or vessel is used do not require a marine licence. Within an SSSI, consent may be required from NatureScot to harvest seaweed from the foreshore, depending on the Operations Requiring Consent for a given SSSI. At the time of writing, the sector is almost entirely based on harvesting of wild seaweed, predominately undertaken by small and micro-scale enterprises[146].
A6.4 The Scottish Crown Estate Act 2019[147] stipulates that the manager of a Scottish Crown Estate asset must not grant a right to remove wild kelp from the seabed in specific circumstances detailed in section 15 of the Act.