Displaying items by tag: Blue Belt

31st May 2019

New UK Marine Conservation Zones Create ‘Blue Belt’ Eight Times Bigger Than London

Dublin Bay prawn on subtidal sand at South Rigg in the Irish Sea, one of the UK’s new marine protected areas

Forty-one new marine conservation zones on England’s coast will create a ‘blue belt’ of protected waters for marine wildlife eight times the size of greater London, as the Guardian reports.

The string of new protected areas runs from Bournemouth to Goodwin Sands in Kent and covers 12,000 sq km of marine habitat, bringing to 355 the total number of marine protected areas around Great Britain.

New sites in the Irish Sea include South Rigg, between the Ards Peninsula and the Isle of Man, which is a habitat for Dublin Bay prawns and ocean quahogs; and Queenie Corner east of Dundalk Bay, which is home to sea cucumbers and brittle stars.

Despite criticism that activities such as dredging are still permitted in zones that fall outside of inshore waters, conservationists say that the initiative has been making a difference in a number of vulnerable areas.

The Guardian has more on the story HERE.

Published in Marine Wildlife

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Forty Foot Swimming Spot on Dublin Bay

The 'Forty Foot' is a rocky outcrop located at the southern tip of Dublin Bay at Sandycove, County Dublin from which people have been swimming in the Irish Sea all year round for 300 years or more. It is popular because it is one of few spots between Dublin city and Greystones in County Wicklow that allows for swimming at all stages of the tide, subject to the sea state.

Forty Foot History

Traditionally, the bathing spot was exclusively a men's bathing spot and the gentlemen's swimming club was established to help conserve the area.

Owing to its relative isolation and gender-specific nature it became a popular spot for nudists, but in the 1970s, during the women's liberation movement, a group of female equal-rights activists plunged into the waters and now it is also open to everyone and it is in the control of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.

Many people believe that swimming in extremely cold water is healthy and good for the immune system.

Is it safe to swim at the Forty Foot?

The Forty-Foot is a great place to swim because there is always enough water to get a dip but like all sea swimming, there are always hazards you need to be aware of. For example, a lot of people like to dive into to the pool at the Forty-foot but there are submerged rocks that can be hazardous especially at low water. The Council have erected signs to warn people of the underwater dangers. Other hazards include slippy granite cut stone steps that can often be covered with seaweed and of course marine wildlife including jellyfish that make their presence felt in the summer months as do an inquisitive nearby Sandycove seal colony.