Monitoring Project for UK Protected Wrecks Under Potting Threat

Protected UK Shipwreck Sites Under Threat from Illegal Potting, New Monitoring Project Reveals

For the first time in the United Kingdom, protected historic wreck sites are being actively monitored for damage caused by illegal potting activities.

This initiative, launched by the Protected Wreck Association, coincides with Heritage Crime Awareness Week, aiming to highlight the vulnerability of the UK’s underwater heritage to criminal damage.

These historically and archaeologically significant wreck sites hold the highest level of protection under UK law. Despite being clearly marked on maritime charts to guide fishermen and other sea users away, pots, lines, and anchors are causing devastating and often irreparable damage to these invaluable historical assets.

The Protected Wreck Association, a body dedicated to promoting maritime heritage awareness, is spearheading the monitoring project. Their volunteers, known as Licensees and Site Champions, dedicate their time and resources to dive and preserve these unique sites for future generations.

“Protecting our Nation’s Maritime History is a vital role,” said Jenny Kent from the Protected Wreck Association. “The volunteers who give their time to be custodians of these wreck sites are amazing. It is heartbreaking to see the wreck sites they love so much, and the dive trails they tend, damaged by potting. The frustrating thing is the sea is vast and the protected sites represent a tiny area of seabed. Moving pots just 50m in some cases would save these sites from impact.”

The project hopes to raise awareness, discourage future illegal potting, and encourage reporting of such incidents to the police. While reporting to the Association via their online form is available, they also assist individuals in reporting to enforcement authorities.

Examples of Affected Sites:

Two notable examples of sites severely impacted include:

• The Coronation: This 90-gun, second-rate ship of the line, built in 1685 and lost in a storm in 1691, lies in two halves linked by a 1300m debris trail. It has suffered prolific potting this year. Volunteer divers, in collaboration with the Protected Wreck Association, MSDS Marine, and Historic England, have attached special pot marker tags to remind those placing pots of the site’s protected status. Leaflets have also been circulated locally, and Devon and Cornwall Police are currently investigating repeated instances of illegal potting.
• HMS/m A1 Submarine: As the first British-designed and built submarine, the A1 sank in 1911 and is another protected site frequently affected by potting. These pots create hazards on the seabed, causing irreparable damage that poses a significant loss to national history.

Sergeant Julian Fry, of the Devon and Cornwall Police Rural Affairs Team and national police tactical lead for Operation Birdie (which targets illegal salvage and interference with protected wrecks), commented on the growing concern: “Recent potting activity on the wreck of HMS Coronation off Cornwall’s south coast has raised the question of whether other protected wreck sites are similarly affected around our UK coastline. Please help us by completing this quick survey so we can gain a better understanding of the scale of this problem.”

The Protected Wreck Association aims for this project to build a comprehensive picture of the scale of illegal potting, enabling the development of a national action plan to safeguard these invaluable underwater heritage sites.

There are approximately 37,000 known shipwrecks off England’s coastline alone, a testament to Britain’s extensive maritime history. The most unique of these are protected by the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 and the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. These sites are closely monitored by Heritage Agencies, often with the crucial involvement of volunteer dive teams.