Regulation of fish and shellfish farm deposits
Overview
The Scottish Government Programme for Government 2025 to 2026 sets out the commitment to streamline the consenting process for aquaculture, to improve efficiency, and clarify the consenting process for aquaculture development between 3 – 12 nautical miles.
Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) are the responsible authority for the regulation of fish farm environmental discharges between 0-3 nautical miles, and Marine Directorate - Licensing Operations Team (MD-LOT), on behalf of Scottish Ministers, are the responsible authority for this activity between 3-12 nautical miles. This creates an inconsistent approach to the regulation of this activity between 0-12 nautical miles and may lead to duplicated effort in resourcing appropriate expertise within MD-LOT to fulfil this function.
This consultation paper seeks views on Scottish Ministers proposals to amend the regulation of fish farm environmental discharges between 3-12 nautical miles by making SEPA the responsible authority for this activity, and making amendments to exemptions for requirements for marine licences in respect to the deposit of substances and equipment from fish and shellfish farms, for the purpose of reducing regulatory duplication.
Read the consultation paper and the associated impact assessments. The consultation paper contains full background information for this consultation. You may find it useful to read or refer to while responding.
Consultation questions preview
The consultation questions are included here for your reference. Please click 'Begin consultation' at the bottom of this page to proceed.
Question 1(a):
Do you agree with the proposal to identify SEPA as the responsible authority for the regulation of fish farm environmental discharges between 3-12 nautical miles?
Question 1(b)
Where applicable, please give reasons for your answer.
Question 2(a):
Do you agree that the existing marine licence exemption for deposit of substance from fish farms which is liable to cause pollution of the water environment be extended to cover waters out to 12 nautical miles?
Question 2(b)
Where applicable, please give reasons for your answer.
Question 3(a):
Do you agree that the wording of The Marine Licensing (Exempted Activities) (Scottish Inshore Region) Order 2011 is updated in regards to the deposit of equipment used in the course of the propagation or cultivation of fish and shellfish to provide businesses with clarity in determining whether the exemption may apply to a development?
Question 3(b)
Where applicable, please give reasons for your answer.
Question 4:
Do you have any other points you wish to raise regarding the proposals set out in this consultation paper? If so please provide details below.
Question 5(a):
Do you agree with our approach and findings within the impact assessments for the proposals set out in this consultation?
Question 5(b)
Where applicable, please give reasons for your answer.
Useful information about responding to this consultation
As you complete your response, each page will provide the option to 'Save and come back later' at the bottom. This means you can save your progress and return to the consultation at any time before it closes. If you don't use this feature and leave the consultation midway through, your response will be lost.
Once you have submitted your response, you can enter your email address to get a pdf copy of your answers sent to you.
On the 'About You' page at the end of this consultation, organisations will have the opportunity to tell us more about their work and/or how their response was informed.
After the consultation has closed there will be a few months delay before any responses are published. This is because we must check any responses to be published abide by our Terms of Use.
All relevant submitted responses will be analysed. This may be carried out by third party organisations who Scottish Government, its executive agencies or non-ministerial offices, contract to do this work. Such data sharing will be governed by appropriate contractual arrangements to keep your data secure.
An analysis report will usually be published some months after the consultation has closed. This report will summarise the findings based on all responses submitted. It will be published on the Scottish Government website and you may be notified about it if you choose to share your email address with us.
You can also join our consultation mailing list where we regularly list newly published analysis reports (as well as new consultations).
Give us your views
Interests
- Economy
- Main hub
- Marine and Fisheries
Share
Share on Twitter Share on Facebook