Monitoring and Reporting

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Marine Invasives Monitoring

There may be monitoring activities already happening in your area. This could include formal monitoring of protected areas and water bodies for Water Framework Directive classification or less formal citizen science including ‘Bio-Blitz'.  Formal monitoring can be carried out by the following agencies and it is worth checking with local staff if you can have access to their reports or if they can supply information about invasive species recorded during any surveys:

• Natural England
• Environment Agency
• CEFAS
• Southern or Sussex IFCAs

Volunteers may also be engaged with recording in your area. Search for citizen science projects such as ‘CoCoast’ and ‘The ShoreThing’. Your local Wildlife Trust or relevant university department may already be aware of what is happening locally so get in touch with them too. Use the Solent Forum members directory for contacts.

Site Based Monitoring

High risk and easy to access areas where you can look for marine invasives include:

• Scrubbing piles or wash down areas for boats
• Wave screens or harbour defence walls
• Navigation buoys and moorings which are subject to regular maintenance
• New facilities – for example a new pontoon or facility just installed will be a blank canvas for all species and monitoring how it becomes colonised will be informative for your biosecurity planning
• Slipways and informal boat or dive launch sites
• Marinas and associated infrastructure
• Hull maintenance on vessels