Commercial fisheries in Jersey are vital to the island’s economy and daily life, while French fisheries also utilize Jersey’s waters. Currently, 6.5% of Jersey’s territorial waters are protected from mobile fishing gear, but the Blue Marine Foundation and others advocate for expanding this protected zone to around 900km², potentially creating a Marine Park. This would ban mobile fishing gear, though it may be revised to exclude demersal gear. To support such measures, an evidence base is needed to assess the economic impacts on fishing businesses versus the benefits of habitat protection. This project, contracted to MacAlister Elliott and Partners (MEP), will assess opportunities and constraints of a ‘low-impact’ fisheries model, focusing on static gear fisheries. Jersey’s fishery, largely composed of static gear vessels, offers a promising foundation for this approach. Additionally, with the end of the Bay of Granville Agreement following Brexit, there are new opportunities for managing local fisheries.
Impact Report 2025
Blue Marine drives global ocean recovery by advancing marine protection, restoring habitats, influencing policy, supporting communities and tackling overfishing, with measurable impact across 29 countries and 446,620 sq km of ocean.
27 February 2026