While some relevant authorities named under the Habitats Regulations 1994 may welcome the designation of marine SACs, others are concerned about the potential for restricting their core statutory operations, and about the amount of resources, both in terms of time and money, that their duties under the Regulations may involve. However, compliance with the Habitats Regulations and acting as a relevant authority with regard to the management of a marine site must now be added to their responsibilities. Should conflicts arise between these various duties, they must be resolved in a rational way. What follows is a description of one way in which a structured approach to SAC management can be developed, which draws extensively on the increasing amount of guidance being developed by the country conservation agencies and other interested bodies.

Forming the management group

Setting conservation objectives

Advice on operations which may cause deterioration or disturbance to interest

Action: The role of relevant authorities in SAC management

Monitoring

Costs

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