Proposals for two enormous seaweed farms off Cornwall's coastline have collapsed after the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) formally suspended the planning applications indefinitely.
Local residents in Port Quin, near Port Isaac, supported by Cornwall-loving celebrities including Doc Martin actor Martin Clunes and Walking Dead star Andrew Lincoln, have been campaigning against proposals by Biome Algae alongside Camel Fish Limited to establish two seaweed farms equivalent to 140 football pitches in Port Quin Bay for over a year.
The initial application submitted in July 2023 to the Maritime Management Organisation received no objections, which local campaigners attributed to insufficient awareness within the community.
Once residents became informed of the proposals they mobilised, resulting in over 712 submissions with 94.9 per cent rejecting the scheme.
Consequently, the maritime organisation instructed the applicants to return with improved plans or face rejection of their applications, reports .
Biome Algae and Camel Fish Limited responded accordingly with an extensive 624-page document earlier this year.
Within their submission, the companies argued that the seaweed farms would play "a strong role" in delivering local employment, education, and career opportunities, whilst "supporting local businesses as service/equipment providers or supplying them with farmed seaweed and seaweed-derived products".
If constructed, the pair of seaweed farms would have seen 144 160-metre longlines positioned in the bay throughout September over two to three years, with seeded lines being fitted in October and early November every year.
Collection would occur in April or May the subsequent year.
Additionally, over 1,720 buoys with marker lights on during the night would be fitted. Critics worry the £5.8m proposal could endanger lives if constructed.
The plans triggered nationwide and regional uproar owing to the development's magnitude, the effect on the coastline's natural beauty and visitor economy, and the absence of meaningful public engagement. Residents worried about harm to the marine ecosystem and limitations on water access for swimmers, anglers, and surfers alike.
Local residents, who organised a substantial campaign opposing the scheme, had grounds for optimism when the application from Camel Fish Limited was quashed in April this year and an identical submission from Biome Algae was withdrawn.
Five months later, the MMO has definitively shelved the seaweed farm plans when it formally suspended the application off the Port Isaac coast this week.
Local campaigner Barnaby Kay, who has led the campaign throughout the past 18 months, celebrated the final blow to the seaweed farm's prospects. He said: "The suspension of the licence for Port Isaac Bay is the result of a tireless, 18-month campaign by the Save Port Isaac Bay Group and the local community as a whole.
"Whilst this outcome is a relief for everyone along our coast, and the thousands of annual visitors to the area, it is a major win for the fragile marine environment and the multiple species that rely on the bay for transit and survival. We are all extremely grateful for the support we have received from conservation organisations, the general public and from Ben Maguire."
North Cornwall MP Ben Maguire, who challenged the proposal, also celebrated the development.
He said: "This suspension is another huge victory for the community. It's a clear signal that concerns raised locally are being taken seriously - most residents found out about the applications long after key decisions had been taken, and that is simply not acceptable for developments of this scale.
"We now need full transparency about what this suspension means in practice. I'll now continue to push the MMO to publish its full review and to set out a robust, public-facing process from here on, so that no community on the North Cornish coast is ever left blindsided like this again."
Cornwall Councillor for Wadebridge East and St Minver, Rosie Moore, remarked: "This suspension gives our coastline a vital reprieve, and as their Cornwall Councillor, I'll keep working with residents to ensure their concerns continue to be heard loud and clear."
