Ambitious plan to restore 10% of UK seagrasses

Seagrasses can be damaged by commercial and leisure boats

A project to restore and protect huge swathes of seagrass has been hailed the most ambitious plan of its kind in the UK.

Plymouth-based charity the Ocean Conservation Trust (OCT) has launched the Blue Meadows project to care for 700 hectares of underwater meadows.

The plants store 10% of the ocean's carbon and also provide a nursery for many commercially important fish.

But they are in rapid decline and the habitats are being destroyed by boats.

The trust said the project was "a significant step forward for our environmental work" and "the most ambitious seagrass project yet in the UK".

Roger Maslin, CEO of OCT, said: "Blue Meadows is our holistic approach to seagrass protection, regeneration and restoration, which is vital to ensure a healthy future for this incredibly important species."

• Seagrass needs to be protected and restored

A pilot has already begun in Falmouth where buoys have been placed in three key areas to protect over 20 hectares of seagrass meadows.

A second project site is lined up in Torbay where a further 50 hectares are planned for protection.

The work is being supported by a number of commercial groups and businesses.

Mr Maslin it was important that seagrass restoration was backed up by also protecting the areas from further damage.

He said the charity would work with harbour authorities, businesses and its scientific partners at Imperial, Keele and Plymouth Universities.

Together they would come up with cost-effective ways to restore lost seagrass in a model that could be scaled up and rolled out in other areas, he said.