> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://intelligence.wildlandseco.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Jersey has moved 21.7% of its territorial waters out of dredging and trawling
- URL: https://intelligence.wildlandseco.com/2026-09-20-jersey-marine-protected-area-expansion/
- Published: 2026-09-20T15:56:55.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-20T15:56:55.000Z
- Description: New regulations expand the island's marine protected-area network from 6.5% to 21.7%, targeting maerl, seagrass, kelp and shallow reef habitats while leaving ecological outcomes to future monitoring.
- Author: Benjamin Worlund
- Tags: Jersey, marine protected areas, maerl, seagrass, kelp, fisheries, marine spatial planning, Oceans, Governance, #ecological-intelligence, #brief-2026-09-20, #global-radar, #government-data, #geo-europe

Evidence

Government data

Geography

Jersey, Channel Islands

System

Shallow marine reefs, maerl, seagrass and kelp habitats

## WHAT THE EVIDENCE SAYS

Effective September 1, the Government of Jersey expanded the share of territorial waters protected from dredging and trawling from 6.5% to 21.7%. The network is designed around sensitive shallow reefs and OSPAR-listed habitats including maerl beds, seagrass meadows and kelp, with government monitoring planned to track the effects of the new measures.

## WHY IT MATTERS / OUR READ

The useful signal is that protected-area quality depends partly on which pressures are actually restricted, not only on how much area is mapped. Jersey's expansion links mapped sensitive habitats to specific mobile-gear exclusions. The next test is implementation: whether compliance, monitoring and fisheries adaptation translate those rules into measurable ecological outcomes.

## CAVEATS / UNCERTAINTY

This is an official implementation announcement, not a before-after ecological outcome study. The 21.7% figure describes waters protected from dredging and trawling rather than a universal no-take designation, and some additional or sensitive areas remain phased or contested in the 2030 protection pathway.

## SOURCE

Government of Jersey  
[View original evidence ↗](https://www.gov.je/News/2026/pages/mpaexpansion.aspx?ref=intelligence.wildlandseco.com)

States Assembly scrutiny comments  
[View supporting source ↗](https://www.statesassembly.je/publications/comments/2026/p-18-2026-com?ref=intelligence.wildlandseco.com)

From the Morning Brief · 2026-09-20

[Read the full Morning Brief →](https://intelligence.wildlandseco.com/morning-brief-2026-09-20/)