Marine: Cleaner Seas report
What we know about the seas
What we do to protect the sea must be based on a sound understanding of the seas and their ecosystems. An important task for Government is to promote this science base. We need to look at all aspects of life in the sea; only an integrated approach can ensure that actions on one aspect of the marine environment will not damage some other aspects. One of the ways in which this integrated approach is pursued is by preparing Quality Status Reports (QSRs) summarising what we know about our seas.
In 1993 a QSR for the North Sea was completed. An assessment of envi-ronmental conditions throughout the Oslo and Paris Commissions (OSPAR) maritime area (the NE Atlantic Region) is to be completed by the year 2000 (QSR 2000). This assessment will be based on separate QSRs for each of five sub-regions of the maritime area.
Three of the sub-regions involve the United Kingdom: the North Sea, the Celtic Seas and the Wider Atlantic.
North Sea
The 1993 QSR, prepared by scientists from all North Sea States, indicated
that the condition of the North Sea was generally good. Damage from chemical
pollution was largely confined to areas which have shallow water, a heavy
load of contaminants and a relatively slow circulation, such as the German
Bight and Dutch Wadden Sea.
This is the best assessment of North Sea environmental quality to date, but many gaps in knowledge remain. The QSR 2000 should help to fill these gaps.
Celtic Seas
The Republic of Ireland and the UK are collaborating in preparing a QSR
for the Celtic Seas encompassing areas to the north of Ireland and the
west of Scotland (Malin Shelf), the Irish Sea, the Celtic Sea (out to
the 200m depth contour of the Atlantic seaboard) and the Bristol Channel.
Wider Atlantic
The area for this report extends over most of the deep ocean in the NE
Atlantic, from Iceland in the north to the Straits of Gibraltar in the
south and the east coast of Greenland to the west. It is less well known
and understood than the other sub-regions, and vast areas have hardly
ever been studied.
Bordering all the other sub-regions, the production of a thorough and comprehensive report for this region is particularly important for the success of the QSR 2000 as a whole.
Page last modified:
01 March 2005
Page published: 21 September 1988