Lundy Island is a regular sight for us here on the North Devon Coast. Lundy is the largest island in the Bristol Channel. It’s three miles long and about 0.75 miles wide. The island itself is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Now the waters around the island have been noticed as well.The waters surrounding the island contain a vast array of wildlife. Grey seals (Halichoerus grypus), lobsters, pink sea fans (Eunicella verrucosa) and a huge range of fish. Not to mention all the birds that live on the island that the marine life sustains. There is also an established coral life and a range of habitats including reefs, seacaves and sand banks.
On 21st November 1986 the waters around Lundy were made a statutory reserve with part of the area being made a No Take Zone. This has remained the case until 2009 when the government launched The Marine and Coastal Access Act, which has been specifically aimed to preserve important habitats and species. It seems they can do something right! As a result, yesterday Lundy was the first of apparently many places around the British Isles to become a fully-fledged Marine Conservation Zone. This means that the areas around the island has heavily restricted (if any at all) fishing, boat activity and dropping anchor, all helping to further preserve the marine habitat. The lobster population has been increasing over the years with the help of the previous no-take zone. Now all the marine life can flourish.
Hopefully Lundy will set a good example for the rest of the country and more of these conservation zones will start to appear.
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