The Scottish Government has been urged “not to put politics before jobs” with a proposal to introduce a number of Highly Protected Marine Areas in which activities such as aquaculture might be prohibited.

As part of the SNP’s agreement with the Scottish Greens, the Scottish Government launched a consultation on designating Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs), which closes today.

This would see at least 10 per cent of coastal waters around Scotland closed to human activity, imposing an extra barrier on aquaculture expansion, which is already highly regulated.

Salmon Scotland has warned HPMAs could put jobs in fragile coastal communities at risk and undermine the government’s vision of a blue economy.

The trade body’s chief executive, Tavish Scott, said the plans appear to be driven by political agendas rather than science and that there is currently no evidence that the proposed HPMAs will work. He has urged the Scottish Government to undertake a thorough independent review of how science has been used to establish the policy framework and to consider all pressures on the marine environment in a balanced way.

Responsible stewardship of a healthy marine environment is vitally important for the sector. One in three salmon farms already operate responsibly in marine protected areas (MPAs), which cover 37 per cent of Scottish waters. Many of these MPAs were designated after the farms had already been established in the area.

Scottish salmon farms directly employ 2,500 people and support more than 3,600 suppliers, with a further 10,000 jobs in every Scottish Parliament constituency dependent on farm-raised salmon. The sector adds £760 million-a-year to the country’s economy (GVA), and Scottish salmon is the UK’s biggest food export.

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