‘The Green Guide to Anchoring and Moorings’ has been produced as part of the LIFE Recreation ReMEDIES Project to protect marine habitats.
A new practical guide to anchoring and mooring best practice has been published this week by The Green Blue, the joint environmental awareness programme between the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and British Marine.
The guidance, The Green Guide to Anchoring and Moorings, has been launched to help raise awareness of the importance of seagrass and maerl habitats and to actively inspire the boating community to adopt best practice when on the water to minimise any impact on these protected marine habitats.
The material has been produced as part of LIFE Recreation ReMEDIES – a four-year project funded by the LIFE Programme and led by Natural England in partnership with RYA, Marine Conservation Society, Ocean Conservation Trust and Plymouth City Council/Tamar Estuaries Consultative Forum. The project’s aim is to protect and restore fragile seabed habitats within five Special Areas of Conservation in southern England, including work to reduce the impact and disturbance of recreational activities through awareness and education.
The online guide, which will be available in hard copy in the spring, details the importance of seagrass and maerl habitats to the marine ecosystem, the impact that repeated anchoring can have on the prosperity of the beds and how boaters can best navigate around these sensitive habitats when launching, anchoring and mooring.
The Green Blue’s Campaign Manager, Kate Fortnam, commented: “We’re really excited about publishing The Green Guide to Anchoring and Moorings, it is an accumulation of hard work from both The Green Blue and partner organisations from the LIFE Recreation ReMEDIES Project. The guide has been created to give both informative and practical advice to boaters which we hope will have a positive end result for marine habitats.
“The guide is free to download and we would encourage clubs, centres and marine-based businesses to share the document online with members, clients and customers.”
Fiona Crouch of Natural England manages the LIFE Recreation ReMEDIES Project, said: “Seagrass is such a vital part of our marine environment, providing a home for juvenile fish and protected creatures like seahorses and stalked jellyfish, as well as capturing and storing significant amounts of carbon. This user-friendly guide is filled with practical advice for boaters to help us improve and protect these important habitats.”
The Green Guide to Anchoring and Moorings is now available to view and download for free on The Green Blue’s website: thegreenblue.org.uk.
