Presentation 9 of 9: Mark Russell of BMAPA and Keith Cooper of CEFAS provide a marine aggregate industry perspective on regional compliance monitoring

1. Regional Compliance Monitoring
A marine aggregate industry perspective
Mark Russell
Director, British Marine Aggregate Producers Association

2. When you know there is a wave coming…

3. You can position yourselves to take advantage…

4. Or not…!

5. Why a regional approach?
• Common drivers – three consenting
phases for existing activities since 2008
• Distribution of industry interests
meant common EIA issues to address
• Common benefits to operators
- saves time & effort
- saves cost
- delivers a consistent outcome
• Similar benefits to regulators &
advisors – best use of resources
By the end of 2014, this approach
supported delivery of >100 consents

6. Context to regional monitoring
• Moving from a position where most historic licences didn’t have
monitoring requirements to a position where every licence has a
minimum requirement
• Cost implications – increased cost per tonne dredged (commodity
price doesn’t change, monitoring simply adds to the cost base)
• Time/effort implications – to deliver the requirements in the right
way and at the right time
• Capacity implications – across operators, regulators, advisors and
contractors
Re-licensing programme provided an opportunity for change

7. Keith Cooper
Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science, Pakefield Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR33 0HT
Keith.cooper@cefas.co.uk
The development of Regional Seabed
Monitoring Plans (RSMP) for the marine
aggregates industry
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8. BackgroundMARINE AGGREGATES INDUSTRY
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9. • Aggregate dredging can alter the composition of
seabed sediments
• Possible implications for biological recovery of the site
after dredging
• Licence conditions used to mitigate such effects. For
example:
– Limiting extraction rate / screening
– Requirement to leave seabed in similar physical condition
– Monitoring programme
• Existing monitoring approach looks at impacts of
ongoing dredging. Doesn’t inform about likely
recovery – this is the important question for
sustainability.
• Need a better way of differentiating between
acceptable and unacceptable environmental change
BackgroundNEW MONITORING APPROACH
Waye-Barker, G., Cooper, K.M., McIlwaine, P., Lozac,
S. The effects of sand and gravel extraction on the
sediment particle size and macrofaunal community of
a commercial dredging site (15 years post-dredging)
(in prep).
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10. Solution?
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• Broadscale seabed surveys (REC, MAREA)
• Improved understanding of the distribution of animals and sediments and the
relationship between the two
• Use this knowledge to set limits of acceptable change in sediment composition to
ensure the return of the original faunal assemblage after dredging
Cooper, K.M., 2012. Setting limits for acceptable change
in sediment particle size composition following marine
aggregate dredging. Marine Pollution Bulletin 64, 1667 -
1677.
Cooper, K.M., 2013. Setting limits for acceptable change
in sediment particle size composition: testing a new
approach to managing marine aggregate dredging?
Marine Pollution Bulletin 73, 86 – 97.
NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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11. Step 1 Identify & characterise the broadscale distribution of
faunal assemblages present in the wider region
Step 2 Identify range of sediment particle size composition
found in association with each faunal assemblage
Step 3 Identify a suitable licence condition for acceptable
change within the zone of effect
Step 4 Assess change in sediments
Step 5 Assess compliance with licence condition
Step 6 Identify any management action
EIA
Monitoring
MethodNEW MONITORING APPROACH
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12. Dataset
Timeline:
• Extensive pre-dredge baseline surveys
(REA 05)
• Dredging commences 2006
• Annual monitoring
Approach:
• Baseline data (05)used to identify limits
of acceptable change
• Latest available monitoring data (2010)
used to assess compliance with the
hypothetical licence condition
Data
• Baseline (2005) - 458 samples (macro and
sediment particle size)
• Monitoring (2010) - 427 samples (macro
and sediment particle size)
NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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13. Step 1: Fauna
Characterising taxa
Univariate summary indicesFaunal cluster groups
NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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14. Step 2: Sediments
Sediment envelopes (acceptable change limits)
NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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15. Step 3: Licence condition
Suggested condition
At the end of the licence term, and with allowance made for natural variability, the
composition of sediments* within the PIZ and SIZ must remain within the acceptable change
limits for the faunal groups identified during the pre-dredge survey. Compliance will be
established using the methodology outlined in this study.
* Percentages of coarse gravel, medium gravel, fine gravel, coarse sand, medium sand, fine sand, silt/clay
Aim
To maintain the seabed in a
condition which will allow for
the return of the pre-dredge
faunal distribution post
dredging
NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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16. Steps 4 & 5: Assess change & compliance
Questions:
Is there evidence of gross change in
sediment composition within the footprint
of potential effect (PIZ, SIZ) and at REF
sites?
NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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Are the sediment changes at
individual sites within acceptable
limits (i.e. not ecologically
significant)?

17. Identify appropriate management action (e.g.
do nothing, vary rate of extraction, screening,
target different sediment fractions)
Step 6: Management action?NEW MONITORING APPROACH
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Clear benefits of approach:
• Clear scientific rationale
• Allows for change
• Effective licence condition
• Environment defines limits of
acceptable change
• Ability to differentiate
between statistical and
ecological significance
• Reduced monitoring costs
• Regional perspective

18. NEW MONITORING APPROACH Implementation
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Opportunities:
• Dataset can help the renewables industry
• Harmonisation of monitoring approaches
across offshore sectors
• Collaboration - sharing of monitoring
stations /data
• Compliance monitoring can contribute to
higher level assessments of marine
ecosystem health (e.g. MSFD)

19. Thank you
More Information on the RSMP
Cooper, K.M., 2012. Setting limits for acceptable change in sediment particle size composition following marine aggregate
dredging. Marine Pollution Bulletin 64, 1667 - 1677.
Cooper, K.M., 2013. Setting limits for acceptable change in sediment particle size composition: testing a new approach to
managing marine aggregate dredging? Marine Pollution Bulletin 73, 86 – 97.
Cooper, K.M., 2013. Marine aggregate dredging: a new regional approach to environmental monitoring. PhD Thesis. University
of East Anglia: UK.

20. The journey so far...
• Five RSMP surveys are currently underway
• Deliver regional sediment/benthic baseline
data for over 60 licence/application areas
• Growing recognition of the advantages of a
joined up approach – tangible benefits
• But it can be complicated, both from a
regulatory/compliance viewpoint but also
in terms of practical delivery
• Growing confidence from the experience
through ‘learning by doing’.

21. The next steps...
• Develop standard specification and programme for all common
survey/ reporting obligations throughout licence term (not just
seabed sediments)
• To realise its potential at a regional scale it will require some
flexibility – both from operators, but also from regulators &
advisors
• Root & branch review or half-way house solution? Existing
conditions/ timings make it more complicated – not starting from
scratch as per RSMP
• There are challenges, but equally there are enormous benefits to
be realised for all – particularly in the long term

22. 2015
2030
2045
TheCrownEstateProductionAgreements
asat1/1/2015

23. Summary
A regional approach to monitoring has the potential to enable the
delivery of more cost effective and consistent compliance data and
therefore support better regulation
• Better for operators
• Better for regulators
• Better for statutory advisors
Everyone stands to benefit from improved delivery,
so share the risks of developing new approaches