The Welsh Government, in partnership with statutory nature conservation advisors Natural Resources Wales, is evaluating interactions between fishing activities and conservation features of Welsh Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) under the Assessing Welsh Fishing Activities (AWFA) Project1. Seabed surveys were carried out by ENVISION in 2020-2021 for the Welsh Fishermen's Association - Cymdeithas Pysgotwyr Cymru (WFA-CPC) in two Welsh Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), where interaction between mobile fishing gear and conservation features have been highlighted as a potential issue. Surveys were completed in the Severn Estuary/Mor Hafren SAC to explore the location of Sabellaria alveolata reefs and in Cardigan Bay/Bae Ceredigion SAC to establish the extent and 'reefiness' of cobble/boulder habitats. Using existing data and information from local fishers, the surveys also employed a variety of different techniques on the sites at different scales to produce maps and information to better inform and prioritise Welsh Government management decisions. In the Severn, benthic and geophysical surveys were undertaken to collect bathymetry, sidescan sonar, AGDS and acoustic imagery data to identify areas of variable ground or potential features. In Cardigan Bay, surveys were carried out using drop down underwater camera systems to establish the presence and extent of 'medium' quality Annex I cobble/boulder reef at previously reported locations. See website: https://naturalresources.wales/about-us/our-projects/marine-projects/assessing-welsh-fishing-activities/.
This series represents 3 separate data sets split by MEDIN thematic discipline, see lineage for more details.
