The Cabinet have agreed to the recommendations and findings of a report into the mass crustacean die-off that devastated the North East coast in 2021.
The report, compiled by the Crustacean Deaths Working Group (CDWG), was discussed at the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 10 June and brings together evidence from local authorities, fishing communities, environmental experts and academic researchers.
The investigation by the CDWG was launched after a government inquiry was unable to find a cause for the die-off or offer support to those communities affected.
The CDWG examined theories as to the causation of the die-off including dredging-related sediment disturbance, but no conclusive evidence was found. The report calls for improvements in environmental monitoring, regulation and support for the fishing industry.
Cabinet Member for Health, Welfare and Housing, Cllr Ursula Earl, said:
“This report is a testament to the determination of the working group our communities and partner agencies to seek answers in relation to the environmental impact on marine life along the North East coast in 2021.
“The mass die-off was not only an environmental tragedy with the effects still being evident today, but it has also been devastating to the livelihoods of our fishing and coastal communities.
“We all owe it to them to ensure this never happens again. We are calling on national bodies to listen, to act, and to work with everyone involved to protect our marine environment and the people who depend on it.”
Chair of the Crustacean Deaths Working Group, Cllr Philip Thomson, added:
“The coming together of lay elected representatives with officer support was an encouraging beginning to securing answers to a cataclysmic environmental event, but the local enquiry progress was tempered by time to establish a structure, observance of procedures, cessation through purdahs, challenges in obtaining meaningful responses from government agencies and significant parliamentarians.
“In seeking the agreed aims of the working group, informative consultation was undertaken with a range of sources, including representatives from fishing communities, port authority, independent scientists and maritime interested parties.
“In attempting to establish reasons for the event, many avenues were explored, including analysis of dredging practice, evaluating the pyridine theory and understanding of water quality monitoring. Whilst national pronouncements clearly discounted the algal bloom theory the only Government alternative theory was a novel pathogen as the ultimate cause of the incident.
“During the workings of the group it became apparent that there was an unacceptable complexity in established national structures tasked with managing the coastal and inland waters that affect the maritime environment, which together with reluctance of statutory bodies to engage in dialogue was not conducive to constructive discussion.
“No revenue support for decimated fishing communities has been forthcoming, and although some revival in lobster catch has occurred, crab stocks have seen no genuine recovery, highlighting that restocking and critical management of this sensitive maritime habitat remain a priority.”
Further recommendations from the report include:
- enhanced testing and oversight of dredging activities;
- financial and ecological support for the fishing sector;
- stronger collaboration between local and national stakeholders;
- a focus on marine ecosystem recovery and resilience.
The report also urges national agencies to take the findings seriously and act on recommendations to prevent further environmental disasters.
The full report is available to read at Crustaceans report combined.pdf