The Crown Estate as the owner of the UK seabed and the natural resources of the UK Continental Shelf (with the exception of oil, coal and gas), issues licences for the commercial extraction of marine aggregates which are widely used in the building industry. If a viable deposit is located, then an application to dredge is submitted to the relevant authority. Before the Crown Estate issues a licence, a consent to extract marine aggregates is coordinated under a process known as the Government View Procedure, by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) in England, and the Welsh and Scottish Executives respectively . The procedure involves relevant Government Departments carrying out a thorough assessment of the proposed dredging activity and involves consultation with all interest groups. An application must include a wide variety of environmental studies, including coastal processes, fisheries, marine archaeology and biology.

If an application is environmentally acceptable, then a permission and licence are granted however, conditions are usually attached which include regular environmental monitoring and zoning to restrict the area dredged at any one time. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have particular responsibility for overseeing and monitoring the effects of dredging and the Crown Estate as the landowner monitors tonnage removal and compliance with licence conditions.

Use the following links to government and regulatory organisation sites which provide information on the economic and legal aspects of aggregate and mineral extraction.

British Marine Aggregate Producers Association
Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (CEFAS)
Crown Estate
East Riding of Yorkshire Council
England Rural Development Programe
English Nature
UK Marine SACs Project

British Marine Aggregate Producers Association (BMAPA)

British Marine Aggregate Producers Association (BMAPA) - Link to the BMAPA website

Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science CEFAS

Environmental impacts of aggregate extraction

CEFAS position statement concerning the minimisation and monitoring of the environmental impacts of aggregate extraction. Link to position statement.

Ecological & Environmental impacts

CEFAS publication list relating to the ecological and environmental implications of dredging and aggregate extraction. These publications are available as downloadable pdf files. Link to CEFAS publications.

Crown Estate

Crown Estate - Link to the Crown Estate homepage

Aggregate Extraction

Information on marine aggregate extraction. Link to the relevant Crown Estate webpage.

Extraction from the Humber region

Marine aggregate extraction information for the Humber region. Link to Humber extraction information.

East Riding of Yorkshire Council (ERYC)

Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan (ICZM)

The following information (sections 3.7 & 3.8) taken from the East Riding Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan provides information on the dredging of aggregates offshore in the Humber region.

For the full East Riding Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan, please visit the following link:

England Rural Development Programme (ERDP)

ERDP information & statistics concerning the aggregate industry in the Yorkshire and Humber Region. Link to ERDP.

English Nature

Aggregate Position Statement

English Nature information and position statement information concerning aggregate extraction and conservation. Link to position statement.

Non-aggregate Position Statement

English Nature information and position statement concerning non-aggregate mineral extraction. Link to Position Statement.

UK Marine SACs Project

UK Marine SAC

Link to the homepage for the UK Marine SACs Project.

Posford Report

Report concerning "Guidelines on the Impact of Aggregate Extraction on European Marine Sites" prepared by Posford Duvivier for the UK Marine SACs project - May 2001. Link to Posford's Report.

Further information on Dredging and Aggregate Extraction is provided under the following general topics: