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SPICOSA: The Clyde Sea, Scotland
Case Study |
01/02/2007 - 31/01/2011 |
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The Clyde Sea located on the Scottish westcoast. The Clyde Sea is Scotland’s largest and deepest (190 m) fjordic system. It is marinedominated but separated from the Northern part of the Irish Sea by a shallow (50 m) sill.It receives inputs from several smaller sea loch systems each with its own restrictive sill, and the Clyde River system, which passes directly through Scotland’s major conurbation, Glasgow. The Clyde river extends into the Southern Uplands with a catchment of 3900 km2 above Greenock. The Clyde Lochs include Fyne, Gairloch, Goil, Holy Loch, Long and Stiven which penetrate the Highlands to the north, together having a catchment of 693 km2 and runoff of 1.3x 109 m3 yr-1. The rural catchment is dominated livestock production. Higher ground is a mixture of moorland, intensive forestry and sheep farming. Until the 1990s, sewage sludge from the Glasgow area was dumped in the central Clyde Sea but is now processed through several large treatment works with long-sea outfalls. The Ayrshire coast has several industrial chemical manufacturing facilities discharging into the Clyde. Human activities are: Shellfish and Finfish Fisheries and Aquaculture, Agriculture, Industrial and Urban Effluents, Forestry, Tourism, Shipping, Sailing. Impact reponses are: Nutrient enhancement, Habitat Destruction, Biodiversity changes, Trophic Web Change, Pathogens/toxins. Policy issues: The carrying capacity for shellfish culture and the assimilative capacity for finfish culture. Consequences for fishing and aquaculture of increased recreational sailing activity in terms of space competition both at sea and in harbours. What is the sustainable harvest of wild shellfish and finfish. The role of Marine Protected Areas for enhancing fisheries and for conservation. The consequences for the ecosystem of reduced sewage inputs. Policy changes: Aquaculture planning processes transferring from National to Local Authority; Implementation of the WFD and Catchment Management Planning; Marine Spatial Planning proposals; Proposed UK Marine Act. |
Fishery and Aquaculture, Harbour facilities, Policy, Spatial planning |
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Tavis Potts Scottish Association for Marine Science E-Mail: Tavis.potts@sams.ac.uk |
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Core Partner: Plymouth Marine Laboratory; University of Cardiff, Department of Earth Sciences ; University of Napier, School of Life Sciences Linked partner: University of Portsmouth, Centre for Marine and Aquatic Resources |
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