Do you want a 100 hectare seaweed farm off Combe Martin?
What's going on?
In 2023 an application was submitted to the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) for a 100 hectare seaweed farm in the nearshore just off Combe Martin. Public consultation for this proposal closed last year. The company behind this application, Aqua Botanika, also have a much smaller seaweed farm off Torbay.
Aqua Botanika are a 'sister' company to Biome Algae Ltd, self-described 'industry leaders', although they are yet to be granted a licence for a seaweed farm anywhere. In Port Quin, Port Isaac and Gerrans Bay, all in Cornwall, communities have been fighting all year against Biome Algae applications which are woefully inadequate, littered with falsehoods and misleading statements. The applications (there are two) for Port Quin show multiple copy-and-paste entries taken from previous applications, so much so that the name 'Gerrans Bay' appears occasionally instead of Port Quin.
Similar copy-and-paste entries appear in the Combe Martin application form, and in many respects it is generally in an even worse state than the Biome Algae applications.
Originally there were SIX applications for unprecedentedly large farms (over 100 hectares) for sites across the South West, all linked to Biome Algae. Biome Algae withdrew their application for Gerrans Bay after a very successful community campaign, and Port Quin is on a knife-edge. Port Isaac (which Biome Algae are no longer involved with) is currently being vociferously contested. It was licensed in 2023 with no transparent consultation.
One of the starkest things all these applications have in common is that very few people knew they were happening. It appears that every effort was made to avoid public scrutiny.
After the initial consultation period for Port Quin in 2023, there were no objections to the proposals. Once we had discovered the applications and forced a transparent public consultation, there were over 700.
An 'unprecedented' number, according to the MMO.
Were you consulted on the Combe Martin seaweed farm?
Aqua Botanika claims:
Environmental
- Carbon sequestration -Not unless they grow it then bury it at sea.
- Biodiversity net gain - nope
- Fish nursery - they pull out the 'fish nursery' at spawning time
- Shelter and feeding ground for dolphins and seals - they don't need this shelter, thanks. Entanglement risk.
- Excess nutrient absorption - including heavy metals such as antimony, arsenic and lead.
Social
- Varied job creation - for short periods seasonally, if at all.
- Coastal community support - not a priority at all.
- Economy revitalisation - nope, not locally.
Contact your MP
Ian Roome, MP for North Devon
If you are local to Combe Martin, Ian is your MP - ian.roome.mp@parliament.uk. It's possible that you are in Sir Geoff's constituency close by: Geoffrey Cox MP - coxg@parliament.uk
Ian and his office are fully briefed on the seaweed situation, so if you are at all concerned please contact him, adding your name and address and contact details.
You can also contact Save Our Bays using the contact form on the home page, or by emailing info@saveourbays.org.uk
Below are some documents to help you understand what is going on. Please take them with a pinch of salt as half of them were submitted by the applicant. You can view the entire application on the MMO's Public Register. Add the case number MLA/2023/00227.
Please look at the objection from Sue Sayer MBE (Sue S Aqua Botanika) and the response to our Tier 1 Complaint from the MMO (Combe Martin 2024.10.25-C2540) below.
Compare and Contrast....
Biome Algae Port Quin application:
Aqua Botanika Combe Martin application:
Aqua Botanika Combe Martin application:
Aqua Botanika Combe Martin application:
Aqua Botanika Combe Martin application:
Aqua Botanika Combe Martin application: