Millom Coastguard have issued a warning following a confirmed wash up of a Portuguese Man o’War on the beach at Haverigg. The venom can cause pain to humans and animals and in extreme cases can even cause death. Millom Coastguard are urging people to take care especially with children and animals who are naturally inquisitive.

There have been reports of a highly poisonous plant being washed up on local beaches. So far there have been confirmed sightings at Millom and St Bees. Hemlock Water Dropwort (Oenanthe crocata), also known as Dead Man’s Fingers. Even a small portion can prove fatal to humans by attacking the nervous system. It is also fatal to animals. The plant has a highly poisonous root that looks, and smells, like Parsnip. It is highly likely that this is happening due to the aftermath of recent stormy weather. The Coastguard advise people, especially with children and animals, to stay vigilant, avoid this plant and take extra care when visiting the beach.

NWIFCA have received formal advice on the Pilling and Newbiggin cockle fishery HRA. After a requirement for further information to be provided on previous years cockle stock and landings and additional assessment on a number of SPA features, which from BTO WeBS data are down in numbers in 2020, a fishery at Pilling would be HRA compliant and the NWSFC Byelaw 13A closure will be removed as of 00:01 Monday 13th September 2021. When considering the potential impacts of opening both Pilling and Newbiggin the conclusion of the HRA was that the fisheries would not be HRA compliant, as there would not be sufficient cockle in varied size ranges on the remainder of the closed beds for bird food requirements and therefore Newbiggin will remain closed. Additionally there have been reports from industry and IFCOs of a spat settlement on parts of Flookburgh, Leven and Pilling which has been incorporated into the amended HRA. For further information please contact the office.

An inspection was carried out on 24th August 2021. The condition of the mussel and the substrate it is on has changed which is expected due to the weather, time of year and that the mussel has been fished. The mussel has reduced in density and the layer of sediment protecting the underlying substrate has thinned with areas of exposed stony sediment. The substrate present is sand and there is very little mud present. The mussel present is hard in and currently stable. Due to the fishery no longer being HRA compliant the fishery is closed with immediate effect. The AUTHORISATION TO FISH UNDERSIZED MUSSEL FROM SOUTH AMERICA 2021 has been revoked. All NWIFCA Dredge Permit holders will be notified that the flexible permit conditions allowing dredging at South America has been revoked.  The bed will continued to be monitored and should the situation change further updates will be provided. For further information please contact the office.

Further to the update provided on 23 July (https://www.nw-ifca.gov.uk/news/pilling-and-newbiggin-cockle-fisheries-update/) NWIFCA will not have received formal advice from Natural England on the HRA completed by NWIFCA on the potential cockle fisheries at Newbiggin and Pilling by the 1st September 2021. As such the beds will be closed under NWSFC Byelaw 13A along with the other beds within Morecambe Bay. Once NWIFCA has received formal advice, NWIFCA will provide a further update if a fishery would be HRA compliant and any potential opening date.

In addition to South America, Perch Scar will be opening to dredge fishing for seed mussel on Monday 16th August. To fish this fishery you must hold a Dredge Permit issued under the Restrictions on Use of a Dredge, application forms for the permit are available below. Existing permit holders will be issued with the flexible permit conditions for the fishery in advance. Dredge Permit Application 2021 Seed Mussel Supplementary Form 2021

Heysham Flat Seed Mussel Fishery will open to Byelaw 3 permit holders on 18th August 2021 and will run until 31st December 2021, with the exception of bank holiday Monday (30th August 2020). The authorisation is posted below. Access permits must be obtained from Lancaster City Council to attend the fishery. View Authorisation (pdf)

Making Your Catch Count: Sea angling in the UK – be part of it! Ever wanted to know how many people fish and what is caught in the sea? New research led by the Centre for Environment, fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and Substance has been released today, based on one of the biggest citizen science projects in fishing. The report provides estimates of the numbers of sea anglers, participation rates, and catches across the UK in 2018 and 2019 (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sea-angling-in-the-uk-report-2018-and-2019). This ongoing study is a very large citizen science project, where over 2,000 sea anglers from across the UK volunteered to provide data on their fishing trip locations and catches each year. Using a unique, free mobile app and online tool each individual diarist records their activity and demonstrates the importance that sea anglers place in supporting the conservation of fish stocks. Data collected is used by scientists to inform advice for the sustainable management of the UK’s fisheries. In the study, which is open for new participants online (www.seaangling.org), diarists recorded over 8,500 fishing sessions and catches of over 70,000 fish of around 100 different species, making it a huge citizen science data collection exercise to reveal more…

Perch and Black Scar The mussel was inspected on 26th July and is currently not in a condition suitable for dredging, NWIFCA will carry out further inspection in two weeks’ time to assess the condition. Heysham Flat The mussel was inspected on 23rd July has already started to scour and is very loose across a large percentage of the bed. The hand gathered seed fishery will open as soon as permits and access has been agreed with the council. Falklands The mussel was inspected on 25th July, from the area inspected there has been a decrease in stock with areas of exposed hard substrate and Sabellaria alveolata consistent across the bed. Due to the fishery not being HRA compliant the fishery will remain closed and NWIFCA will carry out further inspections to monitor the situation. South America The mussel was inspected on 26th July, the mussel is very loose and on a mixture of sand, sandy mud and mud. The fishery has undergone a HRA with formal advice from Natural England agreeing with officer assessment of potential impacts. As of 30th July South America is open by authorisation to Byelaw 3 permit holders and by a permitted dredge fishery. View…

In June 2021, NWIFCA officers advised that cockle fisheries in Morecambe Bay should not be opened in 2021. This was in response to concerns of stocks within Morecambe Bay being at their lowest for 5 years and most importantly very sparse juvenile stock in all areas. The fisheries were discussed at a meeting of the NWIFCA Technical Science and Byelaws (TSB) Committee on 30 June. TSB resolved to permit cockle fisheries on cockle beds at Pilling and Newbiggin sands subject to the Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA). Since the TSB on 30 June an HRA assessing the potential impacts of a cockle fishery at Pilling and Newbiggin has been drafted and has been submitted to Natural England for consideration and for formal advice. As this is the first year of reduced cockles stock in Morecambe Bay since cockle fisheries reopened in 2016, and due to the adult and juvenile stock composition, the HRA has been escalated to a national team within Natural England for further discussion. Therefore, no decision on the opening of the Pilling or Newbiggin cockle beds can take place before the 18th August 2021. Once NWIFCA has received formal advice from Natural England, NWIFCA will provide further updates as…

Following discussion and approval by NWIFCA Technical Science and Byelaws Sub-committee (TSB) there are a number of potential seed mussel fisheries within Morecambe Bay. Fisheries are dependent of the stock being putting down significant mud, becoming very loose, in imminent risk of being washed away, and are subject to HRA. The potential fisheries are: A permitted dredge fishery at Perch and Black Scar, Fleetwood. An authorised NWIFCA byelaw 3 hand gathered fishery at Heysham Flat, Morecambe. An authorised NWIFCA byelaw 3 hand gathered and permitted dredge fishery at South America mussel bed, North Morecambe Bay. A permitted dredge fishery at Falklands mussel bed, North Morecambe Bay. Seed mussel in Morecambe Bay have a history of settling densely, growing rapidly, becoming unstable and washing away through natural processes in a matter of weeks. Officers continue to monitor the stock and providing the mussel puts down sufficient mud to ensure protection of the cobble substrate from hand gathering and dredging and the mussel is in imminent risk of being washed away, the Authority will issue an authorisation to all NWIFCA byelaw 3 permit holders to take seed by hand and issue permits to dredge in accordance with the ‘NWIFCA Restrictions on the…

Defra is launching two calls for evidence from 12 July 2021 to 31 August 2021 to capture views from the fishing sector, wider fishing community and other relevant stakeholders on: latent capacity in the over 10m scallop and shellfish sector fleets; and impacts of greater restrictions for the under 15m scallop fleet in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Defra is working closely with the Scallop Industry Consultation Group and the Shellfish Industry Advisory Group and its species-specific sub-groups, to develop future management proposals in the scallop and shellfish sectors, as part of a wider programme of work of Government/industry collaboration. These industry groups have identified scallop and shellfish latent capacity in the over 10m fleet and the current fishing arrangements for the under 15m scallop fleet as policy areas that require further consideration. A better understanding of the evidence will help inform management approaches. Your responses to the questions asked in the two calls for evidence will help us gather information around the risks these two policy areas present to the sustainability of the stocks (king scallops, crabs, lobsters and crawfish); identify challenges the sectors are facing; and collect the evidence we need to help us consider future management measures…