Exploration for gas and oil reserves in the Moray Firth will be put on hold until surveys on bottlenose dolphins and whales living in the waters have been carried out, it has emerged.
In December 2007, the UK Government announced that it was considering allowing exploration for fossil fuels within the Moray Firth Special Area of Conservation, an area created to protect vulnerable dolphins in the firth.
Although the government has agreed that no exploration will be held prior to the surveys, a spokeswoman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) yesterday hinted that oil and gas searches would have to go ahead at some point because “the government must ensure that there is sufficient energy to meet demand in the UK”.
Following the government’s announcement in 2007, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) launched a campaign, which culminated in an 18,000-name petition being delivered to DECC.
Yesterday, Sarah Dolman, WDCS’s head of policy for Scotland, said the government’s agreement to fund research into the Moray Firth’s wildlife was “a huge step forward”.
She said: “We are very grateful for the tremendous support we have received from local people and WDCS members in our fight to protect the dolphins of the Moray Firth from the threat of oil and gas developments in habitats that are vital to them. We believe that our combined efforts have made a huge difference.
“The bottlenose dolphins living in this area are incredibly vulnerable and the UK government’s work so far does not consider critical knowledge gaps on the effects of oil and gas developments or how different threats might interact together to affect animals and important habitats.
“The dolphins are extremely important to the people that live here and they also attract many visitors and tourists to the area.”
The spokeswoman said: “DECC is interested in establishing whether bottlenose dolphins and other relevant species are resident in the Inner Moray Firth during those times of year when seismic activity is proposed. The Moray Firth bottlenose dolphin population has been researched intensively over many years. However, much of this work has focused on coastal areas.
“In order to confirm whether whales and dolphins, and in particular bottlenose dolphins, are in the area throughout the year, DECC has been talking with interested parties, including WDCS, about carrying out independent research.
“The survey may enable oil and gas activity, while at the same time affording protection to whales and dolphins – a win-win situation.”