Two NGOs, Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) and Défense des Milieux Aquatiques (DMA), have taken legal action against the French government to ban bottom trawling in certain marine protected areas (MPAs) in the Natura 2000 network. They have referred the Chausey MPA to the Conseil d'État and the Bancs des Flandres MPA to the Rouen administrative court, claiming that the French government is in breach of its obligations under French and European law to protect the marine environment.

Bottom trawling, which involves dragging weighted nets over the seabed, is considered to be one of the main causes of destruction of protected marine habitats. Yet this practice is still common in France, and still affects 77% of the Marine Protected Areas in the Natura 2000 network. These areas, which are supposed to preserve biodiversity and support sustainable fisheries management, are thus under threat, with almost 200,000 hours of trawling recorded every year.

NGOs are denouncing the State's failure to implement effective protection measures. In the run-up to the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, they are calling on France to take concrete decisions to restore the credibility of its marine conservation policy.

Experts and politicians, including senator Mathilde Ollivier and lawyer Raphaëlle Jeannel, stress the urgent need to protect these areas and ensure that regulations are respected. Philippe Garcia, President of DMA, points out that strict application of the laws would revitalise small-scale fishing and promote a more sustainable maritime economy.

The Chausey and Bancs des Flandres SACs in the English Channel are protected because of their sand and maerl banks, which play an essential role in feeding marine fauna. However, open source satellite data indicates that an average of 83 vessels using bottom trawls or demersal seines operated each year on the Flanders Banks between 2022 and 2024, accumulating more than 6,800 hours of fishing per year on average. This activity is continuing despite a recognised risk of damage to protected habitats. Similarly, on the Chausey site, it is estimated that an average of 13 bottom trawlers carried out almost 4,000 hours of trawling per year over the same period, without any environmental impact study having been carried out, despite the obvious risk of serious damage to protected habitats.