What is The Crown Estate’s role in the issue regarding seahorses in Studland?
Although The Crown Estate owns the seabed in Studland Bay its ownership is subject to the public rights of fishing and of navigation (which includes anchoring). This means that the landowner cannot take unilateral action to prevent anchoring and any associated damage to seagrass that this may, or may not cause, because it does not have any legal basis upon which to do so. The Crown Estate is joint funding the Studland Bay Seagrass Project, an independent scientific study aimed at quantifying the impacts of anchoring on seagrass health.
