SALMON SCOTLAND COMMENT ON HPMAS SHELVED

Salmon Scotland comment on HPMAs shelved. Commenting on news that highly protected marine areas (HPMAs) have been shelved, Tavish Scott, chief executive of Salmon Scotland said:

“HPMAs united coastal communities and MSPs in total opposition, as they posed a risk of banning all human activity from vast swathes of Scotland’s coastline. We welcome the Scottish Government’s confirmation that HPMAs, as currently conceived, will be scrapped. This decision comes as a massive relief to salmon farmers and others who were concerned about the impact on their jobs.

“I am grateful to all the MSPs who have spoken up in support of our sector during these difficult months and to those who signed our petition outside Holyrood a fortnight ago. We commit to working with the Scottish Government to develop workable proposals that safeguard both livelihoods and the marine environment on which they rely.”

The Scottish Government announcement can be found here.

Salmon Scotland is the trade body for the UK’s biggest food export, which supports 12,500 jobs in Scotland and generates £760 million for the local economy.

According to a recent Scottish Government report, aquaculture is the third largest marine contributor in Gross Value Added (GVA), only behind oil and gas, and construction and water transport services.

The report found that salmon farming accounted for £362 million or 9.4 per cent of the Scottish marine economy in 2020, compared to 7.3 per cent for sea fishing at £284 million:
https://www.gov.scot/publications/scotlands-marine-economic-statistics-2020