Princess Yachts is continuing its long-standing relationship with the Marine Conservation Society, which started back in 2015.
Previously, Princess Yachts have supported the Marine Conservation Society’s work to monitor the protection and recovery of the Eddystone Reef Marine Protected Area. The Marine Conservation Society used funds from Princess to enable the local fisheries regulator in Cornwall to monitor the 25km square of undersea mountain habitat, rising from 50m deep to the Eddystone lighthouse using deepwater cameras.
In 2018, the Marine Conservation Society worked to replace traditional ‘swing’ moorings for recreational vessels with ‘Advanced Mooring Systems’. Advanced Moorings ‘raise up’ the gear from the seabed, reducing erosion of seagrass. The Marine Conservation Society started with five volunteers in 2018 – undertaking meetings with local authorities, and eventually sub-contracting a commercial dive company to ‘screw in’ piles into the seabed, that firmly hold the riser chain. Since the original five were installed in May 2019, the Marine Conservation Society have successfully installed a further 10 moorings with support from Princess Yachts. These two Princess supported projects alone have contributed to the vital evidence needed to demonstrate the importance of these ecosystems and the services they provide.
Since the start of 2022 the Marine Conservation Society & Princess Yachts have embarked on an exciting new project – PLYMFISH – which aims to identify the fish species present in the Plymouth Sound and gain a better understanding of how different habitats inf luence fish and other species. By utilising technical tools like Baited Remote Underwater Video (BRUV), the Marine Conservation Society can observe and record the distribution of various animals in the area, Illustrating the majesty and habitats of the Plymouth Sound.
The Marine Conservation Society has been instrumental in not only getting Marine Protected Areas in place, but also ensuring that they are well-managed. The Plymouth Sound is recognised as a Marine Protected Area and the PLYMFISH project helps identify specific locations within this area that may be of greater importance for fish species. Understanding which areas are more crucial for fish populations and their habit ats allows for targeted conservation efforts, such as implementing stricter regulations for enhancing protection measures in those areas.
“We are delighted to support the PLYMFISH project, helping to better understand the need to preserve and recover our local marine habitats,” said Emma Cotton, Head of Communications, Princess Yachts. “These marine projects are strategically important, the collaborative effort between Princess Yachts and the Marine Conservation Society lends weight to the Marine Conservation Society’s overall conservation advocacy work with governments, local regulators and others. Our long-standing relationship wit h MCS forms an incredibly important part of Princess Yachts’ sustainability journey.”
