Regulation of fish and shellfish farm deposits: island communities impact assessment screening

Step three – Consultation

Is there information already gathered through previous engagements?

In 2024 both the Scottish Government and SEPA carried out public consultations on proposed amendments to The Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018. Responses to the consultation informed the development of the amendments and guidance on their application.

Consultees included groups associated with island communities such as; fishery management groups, aquaculture groups and environmental groups.

This proposal does not result in direct environmental impacts. The purpose is to make SEPA the responsible authority for the regulation of fish farm environmental discharges, which currently sits with MD-LOT under the marine licensing regime as set out under The Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. These amendments would be an administrative task of moving that responsibility to SEPA.

The proposals to amend the Exempted Activities Order are for the purpose of clarifying the application of the existing exemptions and reducing regulatory duplication, and as such do not result in any direct environmental impacts.

How will you carry out your consultation and in what timescales? Public meetings/Local Authorities/key Stakeholders

The proposals were presented for input from relevant stakeholder groups via a public consultation, which was open for 12 weeks. between 24 September 2025 and 16 December 2025.

What questions will you ask when considering how to address island realities?

The public consultation set out the proposals with the associated rationale. Stakeholder groups and individuals with links to island communities were be able to feedback and raise any additional points should they disagree with the proposal.

Separate consultation events for Island communities/Local Authorities?

There were no intended separate consultation events for island communities and Local Authorities. It was considered that the public consultation provided the opportunity for island voices to be considered.

Public Consultation Results

There were a total of 27 responses to the consultation comprising of 24 organisations and 3 individuals.

Of the 27 respondents, 19 indicated their agreement with the proposals to identify SEPA as the responsible authority for the regulation of fish farm environmental discharges between 3-12 nautical miles and 8 indicated that they were not in agreement. Additional comments on the proposal were provided by 26 of the respondents.

17 respondents indicated their agreement with the proposal that the existing marine licence exemption for deposit of substance from fish farms, which is liable to cause pollution of the water environment, be extended to cover waters out to 12 nautical miles, 8 indicated that they were not in agreement and 2 respondents did not answer the question. 23 of the respondents who answered provided additional comments.

22 respondents agreed that the wording of The Marine Licensing (Exempted Activities) (Scottish Inshore Region) Order 2011 should be updated in regards to the deposit of equipment used in the course of the propagation or cultivation of fish and shellfish to provide businesses with clarity in determining whether the exemption may apply to a development, 3 indicated they were not in agreement and 2 did not answer the question. 22 of the respondents provided further comments.

22 respondents provided further comments on the proposals as a whole.

12 indicated their agreement with the approach taken for the impact assessments which accompanied the consultation, 12 indicated that they were not in agreement and 3 did not answer the question. 17 of the respondents provided further comments to the question.

One respondent referred specifically to the ICIA. Merman Conservation Expeditions Ltd disagreed with the assertion that the change in responsibility from MD-LOT to SEPA was neutral stating “In practice communities often rely on the visibility of a licensing process to raise local navigation, fisheries and nature concerns. If exemptions are widened too far this visibility will be reduced.”

This response has been carefully considered, and it has been deemed that there is sufficient opportunity to engage through the aquaculture consenting process, including local authority planning and SEPA, for circumstances where a marine licence exemption is applied by an aquaculture developer. In addition, the Consenting Task Group have piloted a new pre-application process to align SEPA and planning pre-application activity. This aligned approach also enhances early engagement opportunities for developers, fisheries groups and other local and community interests. Individuals and organisations will remain able to comment formally on SEPA licence applications, and planning applications.

Note: Relevant sections of this partial island communities impact assessment have been updated following a public consultation on the proposals which ran from 24 September 2025 until 16 December 2025. The partial ICIA screening undertaken ahead for the public consultation was published on 24 September 2025.