South Rigg MCZ Monitoring report and feasibility study

2. Project Background

The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) has statutory responsibilities for advising on, and supporting the monitoring of, seabed habitats and species within UK Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), particularly in offshore waters.

To fulfil these responsibilities, JNCC coordinates and delivers offshore survey programmes to collect evidence on the condition of marine habitats and supporting processes. Evidence collected during these surveys is considered alongside other available information (for example, historical survey data, pressures assessments, and external datasets) to:

• assess the condition of protected habitats and species within MPAs;
• report on whether MPAs are meeting their Conservation Objectives; and
• support the provision of advice on MPA management and the effectiveness of management measures.

Monitoring reports play a critical role in this process. They provide a structured and transparent means of bringing together survey outputs, describing results in the context of site-specific monitoring and conservation objectives, and clearly setting out the evidence base used to inform assessment and advice. These reports also form an important audit record, demonstrating how evidence has been interpreted and how conclusions have been reached.

This Annex A relates specifically to the preparation of a monitoring report based on data collected during an offshore survey undertaken to support monitoring of South Rigg MCZ and is intended to both deliver the required reporting output and inform JNCC's wider understanding of the suitability of this approach for future work. JNCC is trialling the commissioning of external contractors to support the drafting of monitoring reports, this scope reflects the trail process and asks the contractor to play an active role assessing its effectiveness.

2.1 Survey background

The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), in collaboration with the Agri Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), undertook an offshore seabed survey of the South Rigg Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) aboard AFBI's Marine Research Vessel Corystes between 25 September and 12 October 2024.

The survey was conducted as part of the Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (mNCEA) programme, which aimed to address significant evidence gaps in offshore marine habitats, improve understanding of ecosystem function, and increase the value of existing seabed data. The programme also provided opportunities to test and develop novel technologies and approaches for whole ecosystem marine monitoring.

3. Project Aims

The primary aim of this project is to produce a clear and concise monitoring report that describes and interprets survey outputs from the South Rigg Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) in the context of the site's conservation features and objectives, while clearly acknowledging the context and limitations under which the data were collected.

Specifically, the project aims to:

• bring together and describe the evidence collected during the 2024 offshore survey at South Rigg, including seabed imagery, macrofaunal (infaunal) data, and particle size data, in a consistent and structured report format as per supplied guidance;
• support JNCC's understanding of the habitats present and their characteristics (see site information centre) contributing to the wider evidence base used to assess condition and consider progress towards conservation objectives at the site;
• ensure that methods, results, assumptions, and limitations are clearly documented, providing a transparent audit record for internal assurance and future use;
• identify evidence gaps and uncertainties, and set out practical recommendations for future monitoring, including suggestions on survey design, data collection, or analysis that would improve understanding of the site over time.

4. Project Objectives

To meet the project aims outlined above, the objectives of this work are to:

• Produce a structured & concise monitoring report

Draft a monitoring report to an agreed structure and format, consistent with JNCC reporting standards, that brings together and describes survey outputs from the 2024 South Rigg offshore survey, including seabed imagery, macrofaunal data, and particle size data (Baited remote underwater video (BRUV) and eDNA data should be summarised from existing analysis reports. No new analysis, re processing, or interpretation beyond high level description is required).

5. Report objectives and structure

The purpose of the monitoring report is to bring together and describe the evidence collected during the 2024 offshore survey at South Rigg in a clear and structured way, recognising that the data were collected as part of the Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (mNCEA) programme and not within a dedicated MPA monitoring framework.

Table 1.The table below sets out the detailed report objectives and associated outputs required to deliver the monitoring report

Report Objective Analytical approach Proposed outputs

1. Describe the extent and distribution of offshore circalittoral mud within and adjacent to the South Rigg MCZ Use particle size analysis data to characterise sediment composition at survey stations. Compare results with the existing habitat map to assess how well the Broad Scale Habitat was predicted. Point maps showing sediment composition (mud, sand, gravel) at each station (e.g. pie charts or equivalent).
2. Describe the presence and spatial distribution of sea pens and burrowing megafauna Use results from seabed imagery analysis to report the occurrence of sea pens and evidence of burrowing megafauna. Point map showing presence, distribution and density of sea pen species.
3. Describe the structure and distribution of infaunal communities inside and outside the South Rigg MCZ Apply appropriate univariate and multivariate analyses to existing macrofaunal data to describe community structure and differences between stations and areas.

Ordination plots (e.g. nMDS) showing patterns in biological communities.

Summary of differences and variability in assemblage structure between stations and areas

Point maps showing spatial distribution of identified community groupings

4. Investigate factors that may explain variation in infaunal community structure Explore relationships between biological communities and environmental variables (e.g. particle size metrics), where statistically appropriate.

Use Distance based linear models (DistLM) or equivalent analyses identifying variables associated with observed community patterns.

6. Present evidence relating to non indigenous species recorded during the survey

Compare recorded taxa against recognised non indigenous species lists (e.g. GB NNSS, MSFD Descriptor 2). Annexed list of non indigenous species recorded.

Point map showing locations and recorded abundance of non indigenous species.

7. Report on evidence of anthropogenic activity recorded in seabed imagery Review and interpretation of pre analysed seabed video and stills data to collate and summarise recorded anthropogenic features. Descriptive summary supported by selected imagery examples.

Information and materials JNCC will provide

JNCC will provide the contractor with the data, documentation, and guidance required to deliver the monitoring report to the required standard. These materials will be supplied following contract award and will include, as appropriate:

8. Product Specification

JNCC is committed to making its publicly available resources and documents accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Making material accessible means making sure it can be used by as many people as possible. This includes those with:

 impaired vision

 motor difficulties

 cognitive impairments or learning disabilities

 deafness or impaired hearing

Output Provisional Date

Start-up meeting (UK) 27 July 2026

Draft report (v0.1) submitted and accepted for internal review 30 September 2026

Revised draft report and responses submitted and accepted for final review 17 December 2026

Wash up and feedback meeting 28 January 2027