Offshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)

 

This page provides links to Site Information Centres which have been developed for designated offshore MPAs in the UK. Information about MPAs located in both territorial and offshore waters is available on the JNCC interactive map.

 

To access the Site Information Centres, please click on the relevant link below: 

Anton Dohrn Seamount cSAC/SCI North-West Orkney NCMPA
 Bassurelle Sandbank cSAC/SCI North-West of Jones Bank MCZ
Braemar Pockmarks SAC North-West Rockall Bank cSAC/SCI
Bristol Channel Approaches cSAC           Norwegian Boundary Sediment Plain NCMPA
Central Fladen NCMPA Offshore Brighton MCZ
Croker Carbonate Slabs cSAC/SCI Offshore Overfalls MCZ
Darwin Mounds SAC Outer Thames Estuary SPA 
Dogger Bank cSAC/SCI Pisces Reef Complex cSAC/SCI
East of Gannet and Montrose Fields NCMPA Pobie Bank Reef cSAC/SCI
East of Haig Fras MCZ Rosemary Bank Seamount NCMPA
East Rockall Bank cSAC/SCI Scanner Pockmark SAC
Farnes East MCZ Solan Bank Reef cSAC/SCI
Faroe-Shetland Sponge Belt NCMPA Southern North Sea cSAC
           Firth of Forth Banks Complex NCMPA South Dorset MCZ
Fulmar MCZ South-West Deeps (West) MCZ
Geikie Slide and Hebridean Slope NCMPA Stanton Banks SAC
Greater Haig Fras MCZ Swallow Sand MCZ
Haig Fras SAC The Barra Fan and Hebrides Terrace Seamount NCMPA
Haisborough, Hammond and Winterton cSAC/SCI The Canyons MCZ
Hatton Bank cSAC Turbot Bank NCMPA
 Hatton-Rockall Basin NCMPA West Shetland Shelf NCMPA
Inner Dowsing, Race Bank and North Ridge cSAC/SCI West of Walney MCZ
North-east Faroe-Shetland Channel NCMPA West Wales Marine cSAC
North Anglesey Marine cSAC Western Channel MCZ
North Channel cSAC                   Wight-Barfleur Reef cSAC/SCI
North East of Farnes Deep MCZ Wyville Thomson Ridge cSAC/SCI 
North Norfolk Sandbanks and Saturn Reef cSAC/SCI  

 

Special Areas of Conservation – cSACs/SCIs
Offshore candidate SACs (cSACs) have been notified to the European Commission as Sites of Community Importance under Section 7 of the Offshore Marine Conservation Regulations 2007 (as amended), in order to protect habitats and species of European importance. More information about offshore SACs and the site selection process is available on the Marine SAC pages.

 

Special Protected Areas – SPAs
There is one Special Protected Area with marine components (Outer Thames Estuary) where a small proportion of the site extends into offshore waters. More information about SPAs with marine components is available on the Marine SPA pages.

 

Nature Conservation MPAs – NCMPAs
These MPAs have been designated in waters around Scotland for nationally important marine wildlife, habitats, geology and geomorphology.  They are a national designation introduced under the Marine and Coastal Access Act (2009) (for offshore waters) and the Marine (Scotland) Act (2010) (for territorial waters). More information about NCMPAs and the site selection process is available on the Nature Conservation MPA pages.

 

Marine Conservation Zones - MCZs
MCZs are a national designation introduced under the Marine and Coastal Access Act (2009), and have been designated in English territorial waters, and UK offshore waters around England, Wales and Northern Ireland for nationally important marine wildlife, habitats, geology and geomorphology.  More information about MCZs and the site selection process is available on the Marine Conservation Zone pages.

 

MPAs in territorial waters

Information on MPAs in territorial waters (0-12 nautical miles) is available via the links to the Statutory Nature Conservation Body websites: