The Marine Protected Areas Management and Monitoring (MarPAMM) project started in December 2018. This project will use the wide experience of a novel partnership to deliver four novel models designed to support the conservation of habitats and species that underpin Marine Protected Area (MPA) designations within the eligible region. Together with models produced by sister INTERREG VA projects (COMPASS and SeaMonitor) these models will provide the sound scientific evidence base required for marine management plan development for MPAs.
The Marine Protected Areas Management and Monitoring (MarPAMM) Project
In addition to the model outputs, MarPAMM will be delivering 6 MPA management plans (North Coast Ireland – North Channel; Argyll region; Outer Hebrides region; County Down – County Louth, Carlingford Lough and Murlough Bay), using a cross-border, collaborative focus and extensive stakeholder engagement.
MarPAMM has completed work on survey counts and tagging and tracking work on key seabird species at several sites in Co Down, (Northern Ireland), Donegal (Ireland), Bangor and remote islands in western Scotland. Results from the work have been formatted into factsheets to highlight the current state and prediction of future trends in population and continued presence of 19 seabird species in the Interreg VA region (NI, RoI and Western Scotland).
Modelling work on predicting habitat suitability of Irish and Scottish marine areas for important benthic species such as sand eels, the cold water coral species maerl, horse mussel Modiolus modiolus and common skate species are now complete, with work being accepted for peer reviewed journals. Survey work off the coast of Ireland and Scotland using new technologies such as underwater autonomous vehicles have revealed knowledge gaps for future work to focus on.
The seal distribution map created through collaboration with MarPAMM, COMPASS and the Interreg Atlantic funded project JONAS has now been accepted as the standard reference by the Scottish government for planning developments. Work on acoustic recordings from seals off Malin Head are almost complete.
Coastal modelling using the Murlough/Dundrum area as a case study is now complete, with analysis of data from the past 200 years used to identify shoreline changes and substrate movement at both Murlough Bay and Balykinleer beach. This area was also a focus for assessing future coastal flooding, which is of particular concern to local stakeholders and NGOs.
Recently the MarPAMM project launched its first permanent exhibit in NI at Murlough in the form of two interactive walking routes through the NNR. Walkers using the routes can access videos of what the MarPAMM project has delivered to the areas in terms of new science and recommendations on how to ensure the important habitat features and species present in the National Trust managed area remain for the enjoyment of walkers for generations to come.
The MPA management plans on Argyll, Outer Hebrides, Murlough, Carlingford, North Coast/North Channel region and County Down/County Louth region are in the final comment stages and will soon be published on the website for public viewing. These plans involved extensive work and collaborative effort between stakeholders, statutory bodies and MarPAMM Policy staff to create plans responsive to current needs and future recommendations for the MPAs along our coastline.
