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A Scotsman’s Mission Ends in a Fishing Bay Restored A Scotsman’s Mission Ends in a Fishing Bay Restored
(about 9 hours later)
HOLY ISLE, Scotland — Howard Wood, round-faced and jolly, was happily counting the lobsters being pulled, measured and tagged out of the coastal waters he has worked for years to protect. One weighed close to four pounds, its massive right claw dwarfing its left, which was growing back after what must have been quite a battle. HOLY ISLE, Scotland
In a neoprene drysuit, leaning out of a blue inflatable boat in the Bay of Lamlash, Mr. Wood, 60, got an update from Bryce Stewart, a lecturer in marine environment at the University of York. Mr. Stewart, with the help of two graduate students, was measuring the impact of Mr. Wood’s brainchild, which was fiercely fought for and has made him quietly famous – a no-fishing zone in this bay, intended to restore the populations of lobster, crab, scallops and other marine life after years of unregulated fishing. HOWARD WOOD, round-faced and jolly, was happily counting the lobsters being pulled, measured and tagged out of the coastal waters he has worked for years to protect. One weighed close to four pounds, its huge right claw dwarfing its left, which was growing back after what must have been quite a battle.
In a neoprene drysuit, leaning out of a blue inflatable boat in the Bay of Lamlash, Mr. Wood, 60, got an update from Bryce Stewart, a lecturer in marine environment at the University of York. Mr. Stewart, with the help of two graduate students, was measuring the impact of Mr. Wood’s brainchild, which was fiercely fought for and has made him quietly famous — a no-fishing zone in this bay, intended to restore the populations of lobster, crab, scallops and other marine life after years of unregulated fishing.
Back in 2008, working through the Community of Arran Seabed Trust, known as Coast, a nongovernmental organization he founded with an old friend, Don MacNeish, Mr. Wood persuaded a largely indifferent Scottish government to establish the protected “no-take zone” — the first in Scotland and the first to be initiated and managed by a community.Back in 2008, working through the Community of Arran Seabed Trust, known as Coast, a nongovernmental organization he founded with an old friend, Don MacNeish, Mr. Wood persuaded a largely indifferent Scottish government to establish the protected “no-take zone” — the first in Scotland and the first to be initiated and managed by a community.
It took 13 years of local conversation and government lobbying, often in the face of strong opposition from fishermen used to employing large nets and ocean-floor dredges, to finally secure the 2.7-square-kilometer (just over one square mile) preserve of sea and seabed.It took 13 years of local conversation and government lobbying, often in the face of strong opposition from fishermen used to employing large nets and ocean-floor dredges, to finally secure the 2.7-square-kilometer (just over one square mile) preserve of sea and seabed.
Now, Mr. Wood is busy pushing the Scottish authorities to adopt tough rules for a larger marine protection area of about 108 square miles around the southern half of the Isle of Arran, population about 4,650, to limit fishing and favor the smaller boats of the area’s fisherfolk.Now, Mr. Wood is busy pushing the Scottish authorities to adopt tough rules for a larger marine protection area of about 108 square miles around the southern half of the Isle of Arran, population about 4,650, to limit fishing and favor the smaller boats of the area’s fisherfolk.
The rules for the new marine preserve are still being debated in the devolved Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. Mr. Wood wants especially for government to ban dredging and trawling in the preserve. The rules for the new marine preserve are still being debated in the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. Mr. Wood wants especially for government to ban dredging and trawling in the preserve.
For his work, Mr. Wood was awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize in April, given to a grass-roots environmentalist in every continent, and he was recently named an officer of the Order of the British Empire, or O.B.E., by Queen Elizabeth II. For his work, Mr. Wood was awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize in April, given to a grass-roots environmentalist in every continent, and he was recently named an officer of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.
At lunch in a small hotel in Lamlash, the largest village on the Isle of Arran, Mr. Wood was gently teased by patrons who wanted to know when he might deign to head to London to meet the queen. At lunch in a small hotel in Lamlash, the largest village on Scotland’s Isle of Arran, Mr. Wood was gently teased by patrons who wanted to know when he might deign to head to London to meet the queen.
It has been a strange journey, he admits, for a man whose first career was in the landlocked world of gardening. It has been a strange journey, he acknowledges, for a man whose first career was in the landlocked world of gardening.
His father, Eric Wood, grew up in Glasgow, across the Firth of Clyde from here, the son of an electrical engineer who worked on ocean liners like the Queen Mary. But Eric hated the shipbuilding business, joined the army and met the woman who became his wife in Yorkshire, where Howard was born. When the boy was 15, the family moved to the Isle of Arran in Scotland, where his father’s twin sister lived. His father, Eric Wood, grew up in Glasgow, across the Firth of Clyde from here, the son of an electrical engineer who worked on ocean liners like the Queen Mary. But Eric hated the shipbuilding business, joined the army and met the woman who became his wife in Yorkshire, where Howard was born. When the boy was 15, the family moved to the Isle of Arran, where his father’s twin sister lived.
Eric Wood worked with telephones but had a passion for plants and roses, and, in 1969, he set up a nursery on Arran with his brother-in-law. Howard and his wife, Lesley, later took over the family business.Eric Wood worked with telephones but had a passion for plants and roses, and, in 1969, he set up a nursery on Arran with his brother-in-law. Howard and his wife, Lesley, later took over the family business.
In 1973, a friend persuaded Howard to learn to scuba dive. “That’s what got me interested in the sea,” Mr. Wood said, “and we could see with our own eyes the rapid decline of sea life.” IN 1973, a friend persuaded Howard to learn to scuba dive. “That’s what got me interested in the sea,” Mr. Wood said, “and we could see with our own eyes the rapid decline of sea life.”
In 1984, trawling was allowed within three miles of the shore, and the collapse of local fishing was quick to follow. “We didn’t know what an environmentalist was,” Mr. Wood said, “but it was obvious that species were disappearing year to year.”In 1984, trawling was allowed within three miles of the shore, and the collapse of local fishing was quick to follow. “We didn’t know what an environmentalist was,” Mr. Wood said, “but it was obvious that species were disappearing year to year.”
He and Mr. MacNeish, whose family has lived on Arran for seven generations, founded Coast and focused on a small marine reserve as a trial run. But “until very recently,” Mr. Wood said, “the Scottish government was more interested in the short-term interests of the most powerful sections of the fishing industry.”He and Mr. MacNeish, whose family has lived on Arran for seven generations, founded Coast and focused on a small marine reserve as a trial run. But “until very recently,” Mr. Wood said, “the Scottish government was more interested in the short-term interests of the most powerful sections of the fishing industry.”
There was improvement after Scottish devolution in 1999, but the Scottish National Party government “is very pro-business and not especially environmentally minded,” Mr. Wood said. “That’s why it was so amazing to get this little postage stamp of a no-take zone.”There was improvement after Scottish devolution in 1999, but the Scottish National Party government “is very pro-business and not especially environmentally minded,” Mr. Wood said. “That’s why it was so amazing to get this little postage stamp of a no-take zone.”
But there is now “a general feeling that protecting the environment means saving jobs,” he said. “There’s a slow realization by government that there are more stakeholders to the sea, which is a public resource, especially with the rapid decline of fishing in the Clyde in the last 25 years. Now in the Clyde they’re not really catching fish anymore, just prawns, scallops and razor clams.”But there is now “a general feeling that protecting the environment means saving jobs,” he said. “There’s a slow realization by government that there are more stakeholders to the sea, which is a public resource, especially with the rapid decline of fishing in the Clyde in the last 25 years. Now in the Clyde they’re not really catching fish anymore, just prawns, scallops and razor clams.”
These days, Mr. Wood said, “I tell fishermen that what we’re doing is for their future, for the future of the fishing industry.”These days, Mr. Wood said, “I tell fishermen that what we’re doing is for their future, for the future of the fishing industry.”
In 2003, the Woods finally sold the garden center, “and my wife went back to her profession,” social work, helping the elderly repair and adapt their homes, “while I persevered in making no money and saving the world and all that sort of crap,” Mr. Wood said.In 2003, the Woods finally sold the garden center, “and my wife went back to her profession,” social work, helping the elderly repair and adapt their homes, “while I persevered in making no money and saving the world and all that sort of crap,” Mr. Wood said.
His wife recently retired, he said, and the couple’s two grown children are doing well. Martin, 28, works as an instructor in a marine activity center on Arran, teaching children sailing and kayaking, and said he considered himself “incredibly lucky to have found a job here.” Jennifer, 24, is a police dispatcher and coordinator in Edinburgh.His wife recently retired, he said, and the couple’s two grown children are doing well. Martin, 28, works as an instructor in a marine activity center on Arran, teaching children sailing and kayaking, and said he considered himself “incredibly lucky to have found a job here.” Jennifer, 24, is a police dispatcher and coordinator in Edinburgh.
Holy Isle is the southern border of the no-take zone, just across the Bay from Lamlash. Andy McNamara, leading a group of young kayakers near the shore, called Mr. Wood “a local celebrity,” then asked him, “So when are you going to the palace?” Holy Isle is the southern border of the no-take zone, just across the bay from Lamlash. Andy McNamara, leading a group of young kayakers near the shore, called Mr. Wood “a local celebrity,” then asked him, “So when are you going to the palace?”
Mr. Wood grimaced, then tried to gun the boat to douse Mr. McNamara.Mr. Wood grimaced, then tried to gun the boat to douse Mr. McNamara.
Mr. Stewart, the marine scientist, has been surveying marine life inside and outside the no-take zone for years with the help of graduate students like Jenny Stark, 24, a self-described animal-lover from birth who praised Mr. Wood’s tenacity and local knowledge as they worked together to map the seabed. (But then, he also lets her drive the boat.)Mr. Stewart, the marine scientist, has been surveying marine life inside and outside the no-take zone for years with the help of graduate students like Jenny Stark, 24, a self-described animal-lover from birth who praised Mr. Wood’s tenacity and local knowledge as they worked together to map the seabed. (But then, he also lets her drive the boat.)
The impact of the no-take zone has been clear, Mr. Stewart said, with two or three times the number of scallops and lobsters now being harvested, and they are significantly bigger and older, too. “So the number of eggs released is that much more, and so more effective,” he said, adding that the catch in the no-take zone was now the equivalent of an unprotected area 10 times the size. THE impact of the no-take zone has been clear, Mr. Stewart said, with two or three times the number of scallops and lobsters now being harvested, and they are significantly bigger and older, too. “So the number of eggs released is that much more, and so more effective,” he said, adding that the catch in the no-take zone was now the equivalent of an unprotected area 10 times the size.
The seabed, which after dredging looked as riven and empty as a plowed field, is also recovering, with more seaweed, sponges and hydroids, and there are more bottom dwellers, like crabs and starfish. But larger adult fish have yet to return. The seabed, which after dredging looked as rived and empty as a plowed field, is also recovering, with more seaweed, sponges and hydroids, and there are more bottom dwellers, like crabs and starfish. But larger adult fish have yet to return.
In his short speech accepting the Goldman Prize, Mr. Wood said that “when government officials tell you it’s not possible, when you feel you have hit another brick wall, we all need inspiration and heroes.” His inspiration, he said, is John Muir, “a Scotsman who left his native home in 1849 to become America’s, and the world’s, first modern conservationist.”In his short speech accepting the Goldman Prize, Mr. Wood said that “when government officials tell you it’s not possible, when you feel you have hit another brick wall, we all need inspiration and heroes.” His inspiration, he said, is John Muir, “a Scotsman who left his native home in 1849 to become America’s, and the world’s, first modern conservationist.”
Mr. Wood is donating the $175,000 prize to Coast and environmental research. The prize ceremony was in San Francisco, with lovely meals at lavish hotels, then a trip to Washington. Mr. Wood said one of the other winners, Phyllis Omido from Kenya, who worked to shut down a dangerous smelter in Mombasa, said that the cost of breakfast would be a month’s rent at home.Mr. Wood is donating the $175,000 prize to Coast and environmental research. The prize ceremony was in San Francisco, with lovely meals at lavish hotels, then a trip to Washington. Mr. Wood said one of the other winners, Phyllis Omido from Kenya, who worked to shut down a dangerous smelter in Mombasa, said that the cost of breakfast would be a month’s rent at home.
Mr. Wood said he had a great time in America, but on leaving, he remembered, “My wife said: ‘It’s back to earth now. Back to old clothes and porridge.’ ” Mr. Wood said he had a great time in America, but on leaving, he remembered, “My wife said: ‘It’s back to earth now. Back to old clothes and porridge.’ ”