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Plymouth could be at the heart of Britain’s first national marine park, putting the seas on the same footing as Dartmoor and Exmoor.

Experts meeting in the city this week agreed to push ahead with a bid to give the seas a public profile to match much-loved national parks.

City MP Luke Pollard brought together marine organisations, experts and key figures from industry, conservation and leisure for a meeting at the National Marine Aquarium.

They will draw up proposals to present to the government for a national marine park covering at least Plymouth Sound and possibly extending into Cornwall, South Devon and out towards the Eddystone Rocks.

Charles Clover, executive director of the Blue Marine Foundation, said after the meeting: “This moment could be quite historic in a national and Plymouth context.”

His presence gives the project some weight as his foundation has been involved in creating marine parks in places such as the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean and the British Overseas Territory of Ascension Island in the Atlantic.

“Luke Pollard’s initiative comes at an enormously important time,” he said.

(Image: Bernard Bates)

“The government already has a world-leading policy of creating blue belts around British Overseas Territories.

“That raises the question of what we are doing at home.”

Areas around the British coastline already have a confusing array of designations, from marine protected areas and marine conservation zones to offshore special protection areas and even harbour porpoise special areas of conservation.

Mr Clover said the new proposal could incorporate those and reduce the confusion for the public.

“We’ve got to protect the whole marine seascape in a way that induces people to enjoy it, make money from it, and sustain it.”

He said there was no suggestion that fishermen would be excluded, just as Dartmoor National Park continued to be used commercially.

Martin Attrill, director of Plymouth University’s Marine Institute, said he hoped it would make people love the marine environment.

“It’s like pandas,” he said. “Very few people will ever see a panda, but they love pandas and are happy that there are pandas in the world.”

Roger Maslin , chief executive of the National Marine Aquarium, said: “The concept of a Marine National Park is all about connecting people with the oceans, providing greater opportunity to experience, enjoy and learn about the wonders, importance and dependency on the Blue Planet.

“There is no better place to start than with Plymouth Sound and the marine, coastal and cultural heritage that it offers.”

Terri Portmann, a Plymouth-based marine consultant, said: “You could use it as a springboard for other initiatives, such as a local ban on single-use plastics.

“If we could as a result of this get more children engaged through the National Marine Aquarium and doing marine science at school.

“Everyone watches the TV series Blue Planet II and thinks there is great stuff to see only in the tropics.”

Mr Pollard, MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, added: “We have taken the first step on the journey.

“Plymouth is truly world-leading in marine matters and it is time we celebrated and shouted loudly and proudly about our marine expertise.

“Creating the UK’s first national marine park in Plymouth Sound will truly bring to life the sentiment behind Plymouth being Britain’s Ocean City.”

In a 2012 Guardian article proposing a similar scheme, Prof Attrill wrote: “As a nation famed for its seafaring, it is surprising Britain has paid so little attention to the health and protection of its seas.

“Up until fairly recently, our waters have been an open environment where fishermen can hunt their catch with few restrictions beyond the odd offshore structures, such as oil rigs or military areas.

“As a result much of our seabed is now composed of sediment, flat and uninteresting, when 200 years ago there was a dynamic environment of oysters, mussel beds and reefs – something we British would now associate with tropical seas.”