Welcome to the Finding Sanctuary interactive map
Please tick this box if you would prefer this help screen not to be displayed when you visit the map. You can display this window again by visiting the Help tab on the left and clicking the 'introductory help' link.
News
The interactive map will be down for maintenance between 1000 and 1030 on Friday December 4, 2009.
What is the interactive map
The interactive map is an online mapping tool that allows you to view data describing the south west's marine environment. We are using the interactive map to achieve two goals:
Who are Finding Sanctuary?
Finding Sanctuary is a partnership project which aims to secure a healthy and productive future for the coasts and seas of South West England. Over four years, the project is working with stakeholders to design a network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The goal of the MPA network is to safeguard our region’s undersea habitats and marine life, and to help ensure the long-term sustainability of marine resources in the region.
Help
Click here if you would like a guided tour of the interactive map.
Click here to visit the help pages (closes this window).
Click here to close this window.
Why should I contribute my information?
To allow the Finding Sanctuary steering group to make good decisions, we need to understand how the sea is used. People use the sea in many different ways, from a beam trawler skipper working the sea floor to a windsurfer enjoying coastal waters. We need to collect as much of this information as we can to ensure we understand how and where and when people use the seas around us. This can help us keep conflicts to a minimum during the planning stage.
Why do I need to register?
We ask you to register before adding your information to ensure that we can contact you should we need to clarify any of the information you have shared with us.
How do I register/sign in
To register, select the ‘Register’ link at the top of the screen. Select a stakeholder group that you feel represents your interests (you can always add other groups later) and click the next button. Decide on a user name, if someone has already chosen that name the page will display a warning. Fill in the remaining details as accurately as possible and click create user. You will then have to wait for your account to be authorised (normally 1-2 working days). Please note that registration acknowledges your agreement with the interactive map terms and conditions.
To sign in, select the ‘Sign in’ link at the top of the screen. The interactive map will then ask which role you wish to log in to. This may just be the stakeholder group you selected when you signed up, if you want to add a new role, just select it from the list.
If I fall into two or more stakeholder groups, can I sign in using one account or do I have to register multiple times?
You only have to register one account. When you log in, the interactive map will ask you which role you want to add data too. You can add yourself to any of the other roles at this time.
Why does the interactive map run slowly on my computer?
The performance of the interactive map is mostly dependent on the internet browser that you are using. If you are using Microsoft Windows, Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome are both excellent choices. Internet Explorer versions 7 and 8 are supported, but don’t perform well in applications like the interactive map. On the Mac, Safari and Firefox are good choices (all links will open in a new window).
How do I choose the level of importance for a site, all of the place I use are important to me?
When you add a site to the map, part of the information you can attach to it is an importance level. This can be one of three levels: important, less or more. We consider all sites that you add to the interactive map important, but it is valuable for us to gain some insight as to how your sites compare to each other. So, if you have a site that you think is slightly less or more important than your average site, select the appropriate tag.
What do I do if the name of a wreck I visit isn’t on your list, i'm not sure exactly where it is on the map, but I have the gps coordinates?
The best option is to email the office directly. Please note that we are not able to reply to every email submitting marks.
This is a brief tutorial describing how to use the interactive map and navigate around the various menus.
Click the Next and Previous buttons to move through the tutorial. Some features of the interactive map are disabled during the tutorial, closing the tutorial restores these.
You can close the tutorial at any time by clicking the X on the top-right of this window.
You can navigate around the map using the four arrows displayed on the left. The central button takes you back to the last result. You can also move around the map by clicking and dragging anywhere within the map extent.
You can zoom the map using the scale on the left and the + and - buttons. You can also zoom in on any point on the map by double-clicking.
If you would like to add your own data to the map, you will need to register. Click the ‘Register’ button above in the red highlighted box to begin (this will interrupt the tutorial, you can begin again once you have finished registering).
Once you have registered, and your account has been authorised (check your email, it can take a couple of days), you can sign in here.
The view tab contains different data layers that you can add to the map - for example, depth areas.
Click the View tab or the Next button to continue with the tutorial.
The data layers are divided into large groups, in line with the Finding Sanctuary regional profile. Clicking on a group expands the menu to show the contents.
Click the 'Human Use/Economics' group or the Next button to open that group and continue the tutorial.
There are sub-groups within each main group to make it easier to browse the data. Clicking on a sub-group expands the menu to show the contents.
Click the 'Boundaries' sub-group or the Next button to open that subgroup and continue the tutorial.
Layers can be displayed by checking the appropriate box. Some boxes may be greyed out if the appropriate publishing permissions have not yet been granted. The Finding Sanctuary boundary is selected by default.
Click the check box for 'ICES fishing areas' or the Next button to display that data layer and continue the tutorial.
The legend for some data layers is too large to display on the left. Data layers that have additional legends can be clicked to display them. You can click and drag these legends to reposition them and close them by using the X on the top right of the legend.
Click the UK national limits text or the Next button to toggle the legend and continue the tutorial.
Some data layers have additional information associated with them. These layers have this logo 
next to them.
Click the MCZ project boundaries additional information button or the Next button to display the additional information and continue the tutorial.
You can stop a layer from displaying by unchecking the box. You can also clear all of the visible layers by clicking the 'Clear all layers' button. This will also close any open information windows you may have open.
Click the Clear all layers button or the Next button to continue the tutorial.
The Add tab contains the tools you need to add your own information to the interactive map.
Click the Add tab or the Next button to continue with the tutorial.
You need to be logged in to use these facilities. More information about the editing facilities can be found in the Interactive Map help pages.
The Help tab contains comprehensive help for how to use the interactive map.
Click the Help tab or the Next button to continue with the tutorial.
This tab contains the help system for using the interactive map. Selecting any of the help links will open the help page in a new window.