The UK will be showcasing its expertise in marine conservation and protection at the 4th International Congress of Marine Protected Areas in La Serena – Coquimbo, Chile, during 4-8 September.

The UK and the Overseas Territories are custodians to the fifth-largest marine estate in the world and as such have an obligation to protect species and habitats against detrimental human impacts.

As announced by the Foreign Office Minister Sir Alan Duncan at the Our Oceans conference in 2016, the UK is on course to protect around 4 million square kilometres of waters around the UK Overseas Territories.

UK Government agencies the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and the Marine Management Organisation will be supporting the development and delivery of appropriate marine management strategies across the relevant UK Overseas Territories.

IMPAC4 provides the UK an opportunity to demonstrate world leading marine policy development, together with expertise in all areas of marine protection including scientific research and compliance and enforcement strategies leading to comprehensive integrated marine management systems

Note to editors:

• The Blue Belt programme is an ambitious policy to protect and conserve the marine environments of the UK Overseas Territories.
• The UK is on course to protect around four million square kilometres of waters around the UK Overseas Territories – greater than the landmass of India.
• In 2016 the UK announced the designation of protected areas around St Helena (444,916km²) and Pitcairn (840,000 km²) and a commitment to designate marine protection zones around Ascension (445,390km²) by 2019 and Tristan da Cunha (750,510km²) by 2020.
• The UK has previously declared Marine Protected Areas in British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT; 640,000 km2 designated in 2010); South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI; 1 million km2 designated in 2013); and the UK led, internationally agreed MPA on the Southern Shelf of the South Orkney Islands, through the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (British Antarctic Territory 94,000 km2 in 2009).
• The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) is a world leader in marine science and technology, providing innovative solutions for the aquatic environment, biodiversity and food security. Cefas has partnerships with governments, industries and scientific organisations, helping create and secure healthy and sustainable marine and freshwater environments.
• The Marine Management Organisation is the non-departmental public body which licenses, regulates and plans marine activities in the seas around England and Wales so that such activities are carried out in a sustainable way. The MMO is experienced in spatial and temporal marine management, and is delegated by the Secretary of State to prepare and manage marine plans in English and Welsh waters. The MMO also has responsibility for fisheries management, including fisheries licensing and surveillance, monitoring and enforcement of vessels within English and Welsh waters.
• Since 2005, the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) global community has convened every four years at IMPAC, a congress designed for managers and practitioners of marine conservation through MPAs. IMPAC4 aims at sharing knowledge and experiences, and joining efforts to strengthen best practices on MPA application and management, for the effective conservation of marine biodiversity, and natural and cultural heritage of the oceans.
• The first three meetings of IMPAC were held in Geelong, Australia (2005), Washington D.C., USA (2009) and Marseille, France (2013). IMPAC has not only grown in participation and representation of different countries and organisations committed to marine management, but is also gathering momentum as a highly relevant platform both technically and politically to promote MPAs as a key instrument for ocean sustainability.

Fisheries statistics report for commercial net and trap fisheries capturing salmon, sea trout, eel, smelt and lamprey. Also includes recreational salmon and sea trout fisheries.

Includes declared catches for salmon, sea trout, eels, smelt and lamprey by rods, nets and other instruments.

Published title: Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer

The UK has today become one of the first nations to commit to a landmark agreement to reduce emissions from appliances such as air conditioning units and refrigerators that will play a major role in preventing global warming.

The Kigali amendment to the UN Montreal Protocol commits nations to reducing hydrofluorocarbon greenhouse gases (HFCs) by 85% between 2019 and 2036.

Harmful global greenhouse gases could be prevented by rising up to 11% by 2050, thanks to a pioneering move by the UK to cut down on harmful emissions from appliances such as air conditioning units and refrigerators.
The United Kingdom will be one of the first countries to approve a landmark UN agreement which commits to reducing HFCs by 85% between 2019 and 2036.

The Montreal Protocol, the international treaty which this agreement sits under, is already one of the most successful treaties ever agreed, having successfully phased out 98% of ozone depleting substances – including chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons. As a result, the ozone layer is showing the first signs of recovery.

The Kigali amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which the UK today began the process of ratifying, goes even further and extends targets to HFCs. Although HFCs do not harm the ozone layer, they have a global warming potential thousands of times greater than carbon dioxide. Consequently this deal is likely to avoid close to 0.5 degrees Celsius of global warming by the end of this century, making it the most significant step yet in achieving the Paris climate agreement goal of keeping temperatures well below two degrees.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:

Adopting this ambitious target will mark the UK as a world leader in tackling climate change. Not only will this deal reduce global carbon emissions by the equivalent of around 70 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2050 – the same as 600 coal fired power stations would produce during that time – it will also help to protect our health, our agriculture and the wider environment.

The UK, along with the rest of the EU, has already begun to phase down HFCs in accordance with EU law which requires a cut of 79% in HFCs placed on the EU market between 2015 and 2030.

The Montreal Protocol will result in an additional UK reduction of equivalent to around 44 million tonnes of carbon dioxide beyond what would be achieved under the EU Regulation alone. The value of that carbon saving is estimated at around £1.56 billion and the cost at around £390 million, representing a net benefit to the UK of £1.17 billion.

Notes to editors:

• For further information please contact Defra press office on 020 8225 7510 or out of hours on 0345 051 8486.

• As part of global efforts to tackle climate change, countries agreed at the Montreal Protocol meeting in Kigali, Rwanda in October 2016 to phase down the production and use of HFCs. Developed countries agreed to an 85% phase-down between 2019 and 2036; most developing countries agreed to 80% between 2024 and 2045; and ten developing countries (India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, The United Arab Emirates, Iran and Iraq) agreed to 85% between 2028 and 2047.

The Environment Agency publish surrenders that they issue under the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED).

This decision includes the partial surrender notice, decision document and site condition report evaluation template for:

• Operator name: Noble Foods Limited
• Installation name: Dale View Farm, Greenbrook Farm and Poplar Park Farm
• Permit number: EPR/SP3331MJ/S007