What comes to mind when you think of the sea?

[zan]

absolutely!

[ChrisJB]

When I think of the sea, I think about the interface between it and the land. A combination of crashing, gnashing waves and our varied geology and landforms makes for a most interesting coastline; of coves (Lulworth), cliffs, (Bempton), stacks (Old Man of Hoy), caves (Smoo), spits (Spurn) and beaches(Marloes) to name a few.

Regards, Chris

[Force Eleven]

The sea makes me feel small! I also marvel at how much of the sea is still unexplored!

[Seajay]

A good way to illustrate to people the damage done to the marine environment Zan is perhaps the sea bed before a beam trawler has been over it then the aftermath. There must be more marine reserves and we must stop this insane fishing for sand eel for pet food! Why not use the undersized catch the fishermen have to throw back even when its dead, that would give them an increase in income too.

Colin

[NuttyMeg]

Originally Posted by moo

Normally it'd be the look of horror on my dog's face when she was a pup and saw a wave for the first time - on Aberysywth beach, I think. She then spent the next hour trying to catch one and when that failed she started harrasing jellyfish.

Aberystwyth! Im at uni there and am lucky enough to have a beautiful bedroom which looks directly onto the sea. My house - then i cross a tiny road to the beach and the sea. beautiful sunsets all year round

Originally Posted by kent marshman

hiya , luv the sea nothing better for clearing your head than a walk along the shore on a blustery day,

Couldn't agree with you more I never grow bored of walking on the beach and hearing the waves all day and all night, in fact I miss it when I go home, all I hear is traffic then

[zan]

I agree Colin - it's a hell of a thing to see. I worked on a wildlife boat in the Firth of Lorne SAC a couple of summers ago, and the guy I worked with was very active in trying to stop the scallop dredging in the area (good protection eh?) from destroying the underwater rocky reefs (which are second only to St Kilda in terms of underwater biodiversity in the UK). He's been working on it for years, and they've finally managed to get a temporary ban in place while an assessment is carried out on the effects of dredging.

I think it's the Hebridean Partnership (Hebridean Partnership.org :: Protect the environment and promote sustainable economy) who are mainly pushing for better protection up there.

Incidentally, I've got nothing against the fishermen, as they've had an incredibly difficult time and you can understand them trying to protect their livelihoods. I believe very strongly that the only way of making progress is to work with them in these kinds of issues to make the industry better and more sustainable all-round. It's a change that the politicians need to get on board with, and that's where the big problems are at the moment.