Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) for Pelagic Fisheries Management Plans

2. Approach to Strategic Environmental Assessment

Screening

SEA Regulations 2004 requires that qualifying public plans, programmes, and strategies undergo screening for SEA during their preparation and prior to adoption. Fisheries Management Plans are plans that fall within the definition in Regulation 2.

Marine Directorate, Defra, DAERA and Welsh Government consider that regulation 3(2)(b) of the SEA Regulations 2004 applies to the draft Pelagic FMPs as the plans relate to Scotland, England, Northern Ireland and Wales.

In accordance with the SEA Regulations 2004, Marine Directorate, Defra, DAERA and Welsh Government carried out a screening exercise which determined that the proposed policies in the draft Pelagic FMPs may have likely significant effect (either positive or negative) on a European site or a European offshore marine site and they are not directly connected with or necessary to the management of such sites.

The screening exercise used Defra’s Magic Map Application to identify whether the geographical scope of the FMPs overlap with any European sites or European offshore marine sites. Table 3, page 35 of The updated UK Marine Strategy Part 1 sets out the pressures on the marine environment resulting from anthropogenic activity, which includes fishing. This information was used to identify whether fishing activity for mackerel, herring and blue whiting has the potential to impact these sites and interest features. For example, fishing vessels targeting pelagic stocks have the potential to result in the extraction of, or mortality/injury to wild species.

The screening also judged that actions arising from the draft Pelagic FMPs have the potential to affect multiple European marine sites and the wider marine environment.

Based on the outcome of the screening, the fisheries policy authorities concluded the Pelagic FMPs fall within the description of a plan in regulation 5(3) of the SEA Regulations 2004, and so as a result of regulation 5(1) must be subject to SEA in accordance with Part 3 of the SEA Regulations 2004 during its preparation and prior to its adoption (publication).

Completing this SEA does not remove any other statutory obligation on competent authorities to assess the possible environment impact of a policy or measure ahead of its implementation.

Scoping

Marine Directorate, Defra, DAERA and Welsh Government carried out a scoping exercise to identify the scope and level of detail of the assessment that will be documented in the Environmental Report. Regulation 12(5) requires that when deciding on the scope and level of detail of the information in the Environmental Report, the responsible authority must seek the views of the Consultation Bodies.

A Scoping Report identifying the scope and level of detail of the assessment of the draft Pelagic FMPs was provided to the following Consultation Bodies:

• NatureScot
• Scottish Environment Protection Agency
• Historic Environment Scotland
• Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC)
• Historic England
• Natural England
• Environment Agency
• DAERA
• Natural Resources Wales
• Cadw

See Appendix F for Consultation Body responses on the Scoping Report and how consideration was given to the points raised in each response.

Regulation 12(3) of the SEA Regulations 2004 requires that the Environmental Report shall include the information referred to in Schedule 2, in so far as it is reasonably required. Table 3 in Annex 1 sets out which section of this report corresponds to the relevant paragraphs of Schedule 2.

Scope of the Assessment

Schedule 2 paragraph 6 to the SEA Regulations 2004 lists the issues that must be considered for an assessment of likely significant effect in relation to the proposed FMPs. Based on its initial evaluation of likely significant effects and taking into account the results of the scoping consultation carried out (see Scoping above and Appendix F), the following conclusions were reached regarding the content of the Environmental Report.

Marine Directorate, Defra, DAERA and Welsh Government propose that the Environmental Report will address the effects on the following issues:

• Biodiversity, fauna and flora including the following sub-sections: cetaceans, seals, birds, fish, benthic habitats, commercially exploited fish and shellfish, food webs.
• Water including the following sub-sections: marine litter and underwater noise.
• Climatic factors including the following sub-sections: vessel emissions, blue carbon.
• Cultural Heritage including the following sub-section: interactions between fishing gear and marine heritage assets.

Marine Directorate, Defra, DAERA and Welsh Government scoped the following issues out of the assessment, and therefore they will not be covered in the Environmental Report:

• Population (Human)
• Human health
• Geology and sediments (soil)
• Air
• Material assets
• Landscape and seascape

Fishing activity being managed through the FMPs has the potential to have some level of interaction with all the issues from Schedule 2 paragraph 6. However, the scoping exercise considered and scoped in those environmental issues that would be significantly affected by the draft Pelagic FMPs. Issues such as Population, Human Health, Geology and sediments, Air, Material Assets and Landscape and Seascape were scoped out of this assessment as it was considered that they would not be significantly affected by the draft FMPs. Table 4 in Annex 1 provides the justification behind this decision. Additional rationale behind why sub-sections were considered is set out below:

• To link the issues (from Schedule 2 paragraph 6) that will be addressed by this Environmental Report with the environmental baseline (see section 3), we have attributed a UK Marine Strategy (UK MS) descriptor of Good Environmental Status (GES) to the appropriate corresponding issue(s); see Appendix A for the list of the 11 UK MS descriptors. Achieving GES is about protecting the natural marine environment, preventing its deterioration and restoring it where practical, while allowing sustainable use of marine resources.
• Assessing the status of these descriptors identifies where improvements are required to achieve GES. Knowing the current status will help direct efforts to reduce the impacts of certain human activities. The UK Marine Strategy assessment tool provides further information.
• Under the UK MS, Descriptor 1 – Biodiversity has been split into the following sub-sections; cetaceans, seals, birds, fish, benthic habitats. These sub-sections are all relevant to the biodiversity issue from Schedule 2 paragraph 6 and therefore have been included in this assessment.
• Marine Litter and Underwater Noise have been included as the most relevant sub-sections assessed by the UK MS under the Water issue heading. Fishing activity was considered not to contribute to Eutrophication, Changes in Hydrographical Conditions, and Contaminants; therefore, these sub-sections have not been included.
• Climatic factors are not considered under the UK MS assessment process; therefore, no predetermined sub-sections are available. Vessel emissions and blue carbon were identified as the two most relevant issues related to fishing activity that are associated with climate change.
• Cultural heritage is also not considered under the UK MS assessment process; therefore, no predetermined sub-sections are available. The interaction between fishing gear and marine heritage assets was identified as the most relevant impact related to fishing activity that is associated this issue heading.

Table 4 in Annex 1 shows the results of the scoping exercise on the draft Pelagic FMPs.

Assessment Methodology

This SEA reflects the geographical scope (section 1) and fishing activity covered by the proposed FMPs. It considers the policies and actions of the draft Pelagic FMPs (Table 1 in Annex 1). The assessment reviewed existing evidence on the current state of the marine environment, which included the impact of fishing within the baseline state (section 3).

It assessed the nature and extent of likely effects of the draft Pelagic FMPs (including their policies and actions) on those environmental issues scoped into the assessment and where applicable their associated UK MS descriptors identified in Table 4 (Annex 1). The SEA will assess the actions set out in the FMP to identify and mitigate any likely significant effects of the plan on the environmental issues scoped into the assessment. It is the draft FMPs, as a plan of management that have been assessed, rather than the fishing activities themselves.

As the FMPs are a strategic programme of work, the SEA will consider the potential positive and negative environmental effects of management options in the context of the UK MS descriptors. This SEA will also consider the in-combination effects and interactions of these FMPs with other plans and projects, including other FMPs.

More detailed fisheries assessments which consider current activity are already in progress or have been completed. These assessments may be used to inform the FMPs’ actions as they are delivered, and include:

• The Marine Directorate’s offshore MPA fisheries assessments programme and ongoing inshore MPA and PMF fisheries assessment programmes.
• Defra’s Revised Approach to fisheries management programme (inside twelve nautical miles) in England.
• The Marine Management Organisation’s (MMO) ongoing Fishery Assessment programme (outside twelve nautical miles) in England.
• Assessments required to prepare the Marine Protected Areas (Prohibited Methods of Fishing) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2022 which came into operation on 1 January 2023. Further fisheries measures are being consulted on currently for 3 offshore MPAs and the outcome of the consultation will be published later this year.
• The Assessing Welsh Fishing Activities Programme is in place in Wales. This work assesses likely impacts to habitats and features from specific gears - it does not assess impacts from current activity, but the generic assessments are used to inform management.
• The annual Habitats Regulation Assessment (HRA) under Regulation 63 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (CHSR) assessing demersal fishing.
• The wider marine environment (UK MS) assessments

Future delivery of the actions specified in the FMPs may give rise to management changes such as new legislation to regulate mackerel, herring and blue whiting fishing. Such changes may have the potential to impact MPAs and their features and will be subject to more detailed Habitats Regulations Assessment before being implemented.

Nevertheless, this Environmental Report acknowledges the potential significant effects associated with fishing activity being managed through the draft Pelagic FMPs and sets out in broad terms how the FMPs will seek to avoid, reduce, or at least mitigate significant negative effects.

During the development of the draft Pelagic FMPs, advice from Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies (SNCBs) (JNCC, Natural England, NatureScot and Natural Resources Wales) on the impacts of fishing activity in relation to MPAs, PMFs, and UK MS descriptors was considered. This Environmental Report will review how this advice has been reflected in the proposed FMPs, and how the proposed policies and actions could change the baseline.

It is important to note the draft Pelagic FMPs contain a range of policies and actions that vary in their stage of development depending upon the evidence available to support their implementation. The level of detail possible for our environmental assessment depends upon the stage of development of the policies and actions of the FMPs at the present time.

This assessment acknowledges the draft Pelagic FMPs set out policies to develop the evidence base for the mackerel, herring and blue whiting fisheries. Our assessment used the best available evidence at the present time to reach a judgement on the environmental effects of the draft Pelagic FMPs.

The detail of the environmental assessment is covered in section 5.