Solent Forum News – July 2023

~ SPS Editor

The post below reproduces the content of the Solent Forum Newsletter emailed to the forum members in July 2023 with content reproduced here by kind permission.

Use the following table of contents to jump to a specific topic.

  1. Archaeology and Heritage
  2. Biodiversity and Conservation
  3. Boating and Watersports
  4. Coastal Communities
  5. Fisheries, Shellfisheries and Aquaculture
  6. Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management
  7. Grants, Jobs, Funding and Research
  8. Litter and Plastics
  9. Ports, Harbours and Shipping
  10. Recreation and Tourism 
  11. Water Quality
  12. Consultations

Archaeology and Heritage

  • The Maritime Archaeology Trust’s Discovery Bus will be out and about on the following days:
    • The New Forest Show on the 25/26/27th July
    • St James’ Park, Southampton, on the 17th September
  • Read a Maritime Archaeology Trust volunteer’s blog about the  wreck of the Irishman in Langstone Harbour and its two possible origins. 
  • Discover more about the Armada campaign, who the key ‘players’ were, and how the National Museum of the Royal Navy’s Armada Maps tell the story for future generations.

Biodiversity and Conservation

  • In 2021, the Friends of Chichester Harbour secured a significant grant from the Green Recovery Challenge Fund to run a partnership project with Chichester Harbour Conservancy called “Return of the Tern”. This project aimed to help enhance tern populations in the harbour and to produce a landscape-wide nature recovery plan for the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). Watch a video all about the project.
  • The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust has teamed up with Aviva, the savings and insurance business, on a project to restore saltmarshes in the UK. Aviva has committed to invest £100m into nature-based solutions by 2030, and has awarded WWT £21 million for the project.
  • Blooms of huge compass jellyfish have been seen off the Isle of Wight. Compass jellies are a visually spectacular species and iconic of the coastal seas of the NE Atlantic in early summer.
  • Thousands of oysters are to be reintroduced to island waters as part of efforts to restore the native population. The common oysters will be hung in baskets beneath pontoons at Cowes, Isle of Wight, this summer. The baskets and initial oyster stock were funded by Cowes Harbour Commissioners.
  • A Blue Carbon Handbook has been published.
  • A ‘motion for the ocean’ at the next Isle of Wight council Full Council meeting aims to put measures in place to protect the seas around the Isle of Wight.
  • Natural England has added new case studies to the Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) webpages. Case study 2 is on port development.
  • Hampshire CC has been appointed by Government to prepare a ‘Local Nature Recovery Strategy’ for Hampshire, including the areas of Portsmouth and Southampton. It is expected that £388,000 will be provided to coordinate the development of the new strategy in collaboration with key partners.

Boating and Watersports

  • Watch a RYA video all about Wingsurfing.
  • The Water Safety Code is designed to provide simple and easy to remember information that acts both as a proactive measure to help educate people, and to help people understand what they should do in an emergency. A YouTube video has been designed to help educate children about it.
  • Watch the Boatbreakers team dismantle an old Albacore dinghy at their Gosport yard. The boat was collected from a local garden in Lee-on-the-Solent.
  • The National Independent Lifeboat Association has been accepted as a trial member of the UK Search and Rescue Operators Group, a national body representing search and rescue operators.
  • The Italian company nlcomp, which owns the patented rComposite technology, recently launched the world’s first recyclable production boat at The Ocean Race Grand Finale in Genova.
  • Hampshire Police have been out on #OpWavebreaker ASB maritime patrols in the Solent and have visited locations that have been reported to them in recent weeks including Calshot, Netley and Southsea Beach. A number of vessels and watercraft were stopped and dealt with to promote safety on the water. Two Jet Skis were stopped at high speed close to Southsea Beach, the riders will be dealt with under Regulation 34 SOLAS Chapter V (safety of navigation). Jet skis can now be prosecuted under maritime legislation (Merchant Shipping Watercraft Order).

Coastal Communities

Fisheries, Shellfisheries and Aquaculture

  • Scientists working on restoring areas of the Solent have begun growing seaweed in Langstone Harbour to test its environmental and commercial benefits.
  • The first deployment of a gate of receivers in the Solent has been installed to log the passage of tagged sharks and rays.
  • Small baseline fish surveys have been taking place in the Hamble, Chichester and Langstone Harbours for the Solent Seascapes project.
  • A new paper published by Cefas, is helping the UK fishing industry to understand the future impacts of climate change on commercially important fish species across the UK. 
  • New research has found that the design of biodegradable fishing gear (BFG) needs to improve if it is to help address the environmental and economic impacts of ‘ghost fishing’. Researchers from the University of Portsmouth found that the economic cost of decreased catches from fishermen using BFG compared to current fishing equipment, is not sufficient to offset the cost of ghost fishing prevented by BFG.

Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management

Grants, Jobs, Funding and Research

  • Catch up with the Captain of RRS Discovery Antonio Gatti, to find out what it’s like to be in charge of a world-class vessel, including his roles and responsibilities, what life is like onboard and some of his favourite expeditions.
  • A short-term programme to create and restore habitats and reverse the decline of species across England, delivered on behalf of Defra has been launched. The Species Survival Fund will support the creation and restoration of wildlife-rich habitats in England. It is open to individuals and organisations working to recover nature.
  • The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) will be hosting the European Molecular Biology Laboratory’s (EMBL) Traversing European Coastlines (TREC) expedition during their week in the Solent from 13-19 August 2023. Southampton is one of 22 public engagement stops associated with TREC’s pan-European expedition, which combines ocean exploration with sampling of soil, sediment, shallow water and organisms in coastal areas. The expedition’s efforts will enable EMBL to obtain a first of its kind census of European coastal ecosystems.
  • Micro grants (up to 1k) are available for people in Portsmouth and Southampton for projects connecting people with nature. Deadline is 27 July. Email: ami.udeshi@naturalengland.org.uk for details.
  • See the MMO evidence projects register for research that is underway: Evidence projects register – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Litter and Plastics

Ports, Harbours and Shipping

  • The Department for Transport have announced the fourth round of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC): a £34m for real world demonstrations, pre-deployment trails and feasibility studies of innovative clean maritime solutions.
  • The Government has said it will carry out a review of its policies to modernise the UK’s maritime sector, following recommendations by the Transport Committee on cutting emissions, enabling new technology and investing in skilling up workers.
  • In a UK first, a shipment of green fertiliser arrived in Southampton. The fertiliser, part of Grupo Fertiberia’s Impact Zero product line, which utilises renewable energy in its manufacturing, was imported by Bartholomews Agri Food.
  • Associated British Ports (ABP) has published its Annual Review 2023.
  • New research into public attitudes towards alternative shipping fuels shows public backing for biofuel and hydrogen. The study involving the University of Southampton also found that nuclear was preferred to the heavy fuel oil (HFO) currently used in the global shipping industry, although both were perceived negatively. Ammonia had the least public support.

Recreation and Tourism 

  • Watch a YouTube video discussing flying drones in sensitive sites such as SSSIs.
  • The Isle of Wight’s first beach sauna has opened in Freshwater Bay. Wightlink Ferries carried this unusual cargo across the Solent. The mobile wood-fired sauna takes up to eight people.
  • On 12 June, the Optima e10, a 100 percent electric boat, circumnavigated the Isle of Wight in the UK, becoming the first electric boat to make this 51 nautical mile passage.
  • UKSA has shared the success of its Further Education (FE) students as the academic year draws to a close with 100 per cent of its year two students going straight into employment or further education. The world’s largest RYA centre and UK maritime charity is increasing its capacity for its September 2023 intake, which will see it become the UK’s largest training provider for FE students in the maritime sector.
  • Chichester Harbour Conservancy will be holding an auction of impounded vessels on Saturday 12 August 2023 at Itchenor Hard.

Water Quality

  • Havant BC is currently developing proposals to make existing water quality testing data more accessible, including undertaking a full assessment of the costs and feasibility of installing permanent electronic signage at Beachlands.
  • The government has updated its guidance for applying for bathing water designation in England. The guidance on applying to de-designate existing bathing waters has also been updated.
  • University of Portsmouth researchers are examining how many toxic chemicals released from tyres are ending up in rivers, lakes and coastal estuaries.
  • A Chichester Harbour Action Summit meeting was recently convened by the Chichester Harbour Trust to agree an action plan to recover the environmental status of Chichester Harbour.
  • Southern Water has published its annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2023.
  • A new study led by NOC has revealed a change in the colour of the ocean over the last 20 years. Scientists believe this colour difference is due to the impact of climate change on plankton ecosystems.

Consultations