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Elizabeth J Cook,1 Robin D Payne,2 Adrian K Macleod,3 Sarah F Brown4 1Scottish Association for Marine Science, Scottish Marine Institute, Oban, Argyll, 2Alyth, Perthshire, 3Scottish Association for Marine Science Research Services Limited, Scottish Marine Institute, Oban, Argyll, 4Firth of Clyde Forum, Glasgow, UK Abstract: Nonindigenous species (NIS) are those that have been intentionally or unintentionally introduced outside of their native range as a consequence of human activity. If these species then threaten indigenous species and biodiversity, and/or cause economic damage, they are referred to as “invasive.” Biological invasions are not only one of the greatest threats to indigenous marine biodiversity, but they can also cause massive economic and ecological damage. Their presence could also lead to a water body failing to achieve good environmental status under the forthcoming EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive. As the rate of invasion to Great Britain and European waters continues to increase, particularly in light of climate change, the emphasis by member states is on prevention rather than on control or eradication an NIS once an invasive NIS has become established. This paper reviews NIS biosecurity planning for the marine environment, including the most current legislative background, pathway identification and highlights the main issues with the current risk assessment processes. The potential impacts of marine NIS, practical biosecurity measures from Great Britain and internationally are also reviewed. The aim of this paper is to draw attention to the challenges associated with preventing the introduction of marine NIS and to highlight the urgent need for concerted action across the EU member states and marine industries to produce robust biosecurity plans to protect indigenous species. Keywords: biosecurity, marine, non-indigenous invasive species, planning, indigenous, protection

Knowledge of biofouling typical of marine structures is essential for engineers to define appropriate loading criteria in addition to informing other stakeholders about the ecological implications of creating novel artificial environments. There is a lack of information regarding biofouling community composition (including weight and density characteristics) on floating structures associated with future marine renewable energy generation technologies. A network of navigation buoys were identified across a range of geographical areas, environmental conditions (tidal flow speed, temperature and salinity), and deployment durations suitable for future developments. Despite the perceived importance of environmental and temporal factors, geographical location explained the greatest proportion of the observed variation in community composition, emphasising the importance of considering geography when assessing the impact of biofouling on device functioning and associated ecology. The principal taxa associated with variation in biofouling community composition were mussels (Mytilus edulis), which were also important when determining loading criteria.