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The ‘Area Involved’ initiative commenced in March 1999, when BMAPA and The Crown Estate made a public statement of intent which committed both parties to reviewing all dredging licences on a rolling five-year basis, surrendering areas no longer containing economic resources of marine sand and gravel, and publishing an annual report detailing the extent of dredging activities within licensed areas.
Mark Russell, BMAPA director, said: ““The area of seabed licensed and dredged remain key indicators of the UK marine aggregate sector’s performance and its potential to interact with both the environment and other marine users. The significant reductions in both indicators that have taken place over the last 20 years reflect an industry committed to continual improvement.”
Nick Everington, Marine Minerals portfolio manager for The Crown Estate, said: “As manager of the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, we work in partnership with industry, to help support the sustainable use of sand and gravel resources. The annual ‘Area Involved’ report is an integral part of this, helping to ensure our better understanding and management of the marine environment over the long term. The 20th annual report reflects the on-going commitment from both The Crown Estate and the industry to this important initiative.”
Key information from the report includes:
- A total of 19.00 million tonnes of sand and gravel were dredged from Crown Estate licences in England and Wales during 2017 (17.94 million tonnes in 2016)
- The total area of seabed licensed in 2017 was 1057km2 (934km2 in 2016)
- Dredging took place within 90.94 km2, 8.60 per cent of the licensed area, compared with 87.53km2 (9.37 per cent) in 2016
- The area of seabed dredged for more than 1 hour 15 minutes per year (high intensity – red on charts) was 7.42km2 (7.52km2 in 2016)
- 90 per cent of dredging from Crown Estate licences took place from an area of 38.30km2 (33.92km2 in 2016).
With the introduction and development of marine planning, spatial and temporal data relating to the marine aggregate dredging activity will become increasingly important in supporting the sustainable management of UK waters. Both BMAPA and The Crown Estate are committed to maintaining and developing the Area Involved reporting initiative, and we would welcome any comments you may have on the report.
An additional 20-year review brochure is currently being produced which will provide information on the area of seabed dredged and licenced annually since 1998. Trends in annual tonnage and newly dredged area of seabed will also be presented. This will be the fourth in a series of detailed 5-year review documents, and will be distributed in the early autumn.
