Brighton Marina dredge disposal
Important update
March 2026
Brighton Marina has submitted a new application for an interim one-year licence to continue disposing of their dredge spoil in Beachy Head West Marine Conservation. The consultation is currently underway and closes on 6 April 2026.
We remain fundamentally opposed to the disposal of dredged material in the MCZ and have submitted an objection to the consultation - MLA 2026 00065 Sussex Wildlife Trust objection.
We've set up an e-action to help you respond as well.
Read more about our thoughts on the current consultation
Time to rethink
Brighton Marina's licence to dispose of their dredged sediment was originally granted before the site was afforded protected status. Now that the area is designated, it’s not appropriate to allow this harmful activity to continue. It is fundamentally incompatible with the conservation objectives of the site and the Government’s target to protect 30% of land and sea for biodiversity by 2030. Disposal within the MCZ must be halted permanently.
Sussex Wildlife Trust recognises the need for Brighton Marina to remain operational and to carry out maintenance dredging - this has never been in question. Equally, we have a responsibility to challenge practices that risk harm to designated sites and the biodiversity they are meant to protect. We remain fundamentally opposed to the continued disposal of dredged material in a protected area. We want to see commitment to the removal of this activity from the MCZ for good.
The story so far
Brighton Marina’s previous licence to dredge and dispose expired in April 2025, prior to which they applied for a new licence to continue their operations. The licence as applied for would have allowed them to dispose of 100,000 tonnes of sediment annually for 10 years.
Sussex Wildlife Trust, along with many others, responded to the public consultation to object to this application, outlining our concerns and rationale for opposition.
Beachy Head West is a Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), which is similar to a nature reserve at sea. It’s a nationally important wildlife hotspot home to Short-snouted Seahorses, Blue Mussel beds and a unique intertidal chalk reef.
As a protected area, the aim is to safeguard and restore the sensitive marine wildlife and habitats in the area, which is part of a network of marine protected areas around the UK.
Dumping dredged sediment here will impact the reef and its special wildlife.
There are knock-on impacts for people too: the area is a popular surf spot and the impacts of sediment disposal are known to affect water quality.
Despite a huge number of objections and a public-facing campaign, the MMO announced their decision on 16 May 2025 to renew Brighton Marina's licence for a further ten years.
Our next step was legal action.
Sussex Wildlife Trust challenged the decision by the MMO to grant the marine licence through a judicial review.
A judicial review is a legal process by which a court examines the lawfulness of a decision made by a public body (in this case the MMO). It is not about whether the decision is right or wrong, but the process by which the decision was reached.
We challenged the decision on four grounds:
- The MMO were unclear in their decision of whether the application required an Environmental Impact Assessment
- The MMO failed to adequately assess the application against elements of the South Marine Plan
- The MMO failed to take a precautionary approach to the potential impacts on the MCZ
- The MMO did not have sufficient evidence to conclude that the application would not negatively impact the MCZ
The MMO conceded on the second ground, and ultimately the licence was quashed on 4 November 2025, without the need to go to court.
What next?
Brighton Marina is now seeking an interim one-year licence while they ‘address longer-term licensing matters’. This application is currently under public consultation.
Click here to respond to the consultation - we've set up a template to make this as easy as possible. Please help us tell the MMO to Stop Dumping on Our Reef!
Sussex Wildlife Trust recognises the need for Brighton Marina to remain operational and to carry out maintenance dredging - this has never been in question. Equally, we have a responsibility to challenge practices that risk harm to designated sites and the biodiversity they are meant to protect. We remain fundamentally opposed to the continued disposal of dredged material in a protected area. We want to see commitment to the removal of this activity from the MCZ for good.
Details on the licence application can be found on the MMO public register by searching for the case reference MLA/2026/00065.