The site’s conservation objectives apply to the Marine Conservation Zone and the individual species and/or habitat for which the site has been designated (the “Designated features” listed below).
The conservation objective of the zone is that the protected features:
- Are maintained in favourable condition if they are already in favourable condition, or
- Are brought into favourable condition if they are not already in favourable condition.
For each protected habitat feature, favourable condition means that, within the zones both:
- Its extent is stable or increasing
- Its structure and function, its quality, and the composition of its characteristic biological communities (including diversity and abundance of species forming part of or inhabiting the habitat) are sufficient to ensure that it remains in a condition which is healthy and does not deteriorate.
The second conservation objective of the zone is that, in relation to smelt and the native oyster:
- The quality and quantity of habitat available to the population and
- The composition of that population in terms of number, age and sex ratio are such as to ensure that the population is maintained in numbers which enable it to thrive.
Any alteration to a feature brought about entirely by natural processes is to be disregarded when determining whether a protected feature is in favourable condition. Any temporary reduction of numbers of a species is to be disregarded if the population is sufficiently thriving and resilient to enable its recovery.
This should be read in conjunction with the accompanying supplementary advice section, which provides more detailed information to help achieve the objectives set out above, including which attributes should be maintained and which recovered.
Designated features:
- Blue mussel, Mytilus edulis beds
- Intertidal biogenic reefs
- Intertidal coarse sediment
- Native oyster, Ostrea edulis
- European Smelt, Osmerus eperlanus