Licence to dump sediment in Beachy Head conservation zone overturned

It follows a legal challenge by Sussex Wildlife Trust which saw the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) concede it made a legal error when granting the licence renewal.

In the claim, Sussex Wildlife Trust argued that sediment dumping in the protected area would have a significant impact on its marine ecosystem, which includes a rare chalk reef.

Conceding the legal challenge, the MMO accepted it did not give material consideration to avoiding or mitigating adverse environmental impacts.

The licence renewal was granted in May 2025 by the MMO, and would have allowed sediment dredged from Brighton Marina to be dumped at a site within the Beachy Head West Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs).

The MCZs were designated in order to protect ten different types of habitats and their associated species, as well as two species of conservation of importance, being native oyster and short-snouted seahorse.

The licence renewal was granted to Premier Marinas, which owns and operates Brighton Marina, after the company applied for the renewal in July 2024.

The MMO granted the licence despite Sussex Wildlife Trust raising concerns over the lack of robust monitoring of the condition of the Beachy Head MCZs.

Represented by Leigh Day solicitors and barrister Jessica Allen at No5 Chambers, and supported by the Environmental Law Foundation, Sussex Wildlife Trust brought a claim for judicial review, which was filed in September. The MMO conceded before a hearing took place, with a judge handing down reasons in November 2025.

Principal among them was that the MMO had breached section 58(1) of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 by not having regard to the relevant marine policy and in turn failing to use the mitigation hierarchy when assessing the proposal’s adverse impacts on marine protected areas.

Sussex Wildlife Trust says that, had the licence renewal been upheld, it would have negatively impacted the sensitive chalk reef and wildlife it supports.

The charity said that, whilst licences for sediment disposal had historically been granted, this should no longer be allowed now the area has been given protected status as an MCZ.

Henri Brocklebank, director of conservation at Sussex Wildlife Trust, said:

“We are proud to have had the courage of our convictions and to have been proved right in our challenge to a decision which would have caused significant harm to this nationally important marine protected area.

“This outcome sends a clear message that decisions affecting our seas must be based on robust environmental assessment and proper legal process.”

Leigh Day solicitor Rowan Smith, who represents the trust, said:

“We are pleased at this outcome for our client, with the MMO choosing to concede following the issuing of the claim – avoiding the need for a hearing. This concession vindicates the issues that Sussex Wildlife Trust raised with the decision to grant the licence renewal, with the MMO admitting it had not properly considered how to mitigate the adverse environmental impacts of dumping sediment in the Beachy Head West MCZs.”