Once stretching 40km along the Sussex coast, kelp beds provided vital habitat for marine life, improved water quality, protected the coastline, and stored carbon. Today, only 4% remain due to trawling, dredging, storms, and sedimentation. In 2021, the Sussex IFCA introduced the Nearshore Trawling Bylaw, banning bottom-towed fishing gear across 300km² to help restore kelp. This led to the Sussex Kelp Restoration Project (SKRP), a collaborative effort focused on research, community engagement, and removing barriers to recovery. High sediment levels were identified as a key threat, and SKRP is now investigating causes and solutions to enable long-term kelp restoration.
The Four Horsemen of the UK Fisheries Policy Apocalypse
The UK has the responsibility, and the policy frameworks available, to provide meaningful and lasting protection to all its marine areas. This includes the government proceeding with and concluding its plans to remove bottom trawling from MPAs, safeguarding the biodiversity and habitats that they were designed to protect.
28 September 2025
