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Headlines from week beginning 19 March 2018. |
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A round up of the top countryside, conservation, wildlife and forestry stories as chosen by the CJS Team.
Bid to Ban Sky Lantern & Balloon Releases to Protect Wildlife
– Glasgow City Council Sky lantern and balloon releases could soon be banned from all
Glasgow City Council premises in a bid to protect wildlife. The move comes a month after the council pledged to end the use of
plastic straws in support of Sunnyside Primary School's successful
#NaeStrawAtAw campaign.
Image: Glasgow City Council The school's Ocean Defenders group recently made national news when
#NaeStrawAtAw convinced the council to stop using plastic straws in all
its restaurants and cafes as well as helping pupils in Ullapool inspire
the entire village to go plastic straw free. #NaeStrawAtAw has also gained support from Best Bar None Glasgow, the
SSE Hydro and restaurants and businesses at Glasgow Fort including
Nandos, Harvester, Pret A Manger and Marks & Spencer. The Ocean
Defenders also travelled to Arran to encourage primary pupils to lobby
island businesses to end the use of plastic straws. Now Sunnyside's #PrettyDeadly campaign is prompting action on another
form of pollution. It highlights the environmental threat from
decorative balloons and lanterns which are often released at
celebrations and launch events. Birds and other wildlife can die after
becoming entangled in the wire frames of lanterns when they land in
woods, fields and rivers and the candles inside also pose a fire risk. Wild animals and livestock can also choke to death on balloons when
they fall to earth - often miles from the release site. Even items
claiming to be biodegradable can take many months to finally break down. Councillor Anna Richardson, City Convenor for Sustainability and
Carbon Reduction, said: "I've been so impressed by Sunnyside Primary
School's environmental campaigns. The pupils are so knowledgeable and
passionate about protecting the planet. Their #NaestrawAtAw campaign was
discussed at the Scottish Parliament and made national headlines, but
more importantly, it convinced businesses to stop using plastic straws,
preventing hundreds of thousands going to landfill or ending up in our
rivers, streams and oceans.
New green corridor for the red squirrels on Anglesey
– Keep Wales Tidy As part of the Long Forest project in partnership with the National
Trust, RSPB and The Red Squirrel Trust Wales, a large green corridor in
the form of hedgerows are being planted across the width of Anglesey to
help the population of the precious red squirrels. As part of a larger three-year plan, work is already underway to
create vital links across the south west of the island. One new hedge
has been created at Coed Llwynonn where 150m of hedgerow has been
planted with over 600 trees by local Long Forest volunteers. This will
connect to a squirrel bridge, which is awaiting planning permission,
that will help ensure safe passage over the A4080 to woods at Plas
Newydd. This woodland then links directly onto 400m of existing hedge
which Long Forest volunteers are currently restoring. Once completed,
Image: Keep Wales Tidy The aim is to complete the circle next year by planting a further
200m of hedge. The Long Forest Project has been developed by Keep Wales Tidy in
partnership with the Woodland Trust, with support from the Heritage
Lottery Fund and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation. It aims to raise
awareness on the importance of hedgerows and their uses, highlight their
historical value and survey their condition.
London welcomes its first CityTree – a pollution absorbing innovation
with the power of 275 trees – The Crown
Estate London is to benefit from a revolutionary new technology – the
CityTree – which harnesses the power of nature to remove harmful
particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide from the air. Launching on Glasshouse Street, just off Piccadilly Circus, CityTree
is a breakthrough technology designed to specifically combat air
pollution and heat in cities. It has been brought to London by The Crown
Estate, with the support of Westminster City Council, and cleantech
company
Image: The Crown Estate Delivering 275 times the air cleaning capability of a single tree,
CityTree is a pioneering technology which takes just 1% of the space
that would be needed to achieve the same results using real trees. What makes CityTree unique is its combination of mosses, which are
naturally powerful in absorbing pollution and particulates, and plants,
which provide the shade that mosses need to thrive in an urban
environment. The CityTree also has built-in watering and IoT monitoring,
which maintains and measures the performance of the living structure. The London trial will see CityTree tested on the streets of the West End, and comes following successful launches in cities across Europe including Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam and Oslo. Cllr David Harvey, Cabinet Member for the Environment, Sport and
Community at Westminster City Council said: “It will be fascinating to
see what impact The CityTree has on pollution in the local area. This is
just one example of the new technology we want to test across
Westminster. Air quality is the number one concern for our residents and
with over a million people moving into and travelling to our
neighbourhoods each day it is crucial that we make more strides to clean
up our air and tackle poor air quality for residents and visitors alike.
New funding scheme to improve lakes and rivers in England
- Defra
A
new £27 million scheme to improve the water environment across England
has been jointly launched today by Defra, Natural England and the
Environment Agency. The Water Environment Grant scheme will help improve the English
water environment (Defra) The Water
Environment Grant scheme will provide £9 million each year over the
next three years to applicants applying for funding to restore local
eco-systems and deliver substantial benefits to people and the
environment. Potential projects could include river restoration activities,
removal of obstacles to help fish moving along rivers and streams or
actions to improve the water quality. Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey said: “The Water Environment
Grant scheme offers a fantastic opportunity for applicants from across
the country to secure funding for projects to enhance the environment,
boost wildlife and benefit their rural community.”
NOC contributes to major new government report on future of the sea
- National Oceanography Centre A major new report looking at the future of the sea, published by the
Government Office for Science, sets out the opportunities available for
the UK to capitalise on its existing strengths in research, technology
and the diversity of ocean industries. The report’s expert advisory group included the National Oceanography
Centre’s Executive Director, Professor Ed Hill, and Director of Science
and Technology, Professor Angela Hatton. Speaking at the launch of the report Ed Hill said, “I am pleased to
welcome the Government Office for Science’s Foresight Future of the Sea
report. As the report shows, marine science is a real UK strength – we
are currently third in the world for the number of marine science
publications. However, there is still more work to be done to achieve
greater knowledge of the marine environment and the impacts of climate
change. This will be critical for making a success of the future that
this report anticipates.” The report identifies four major areas that can deliver opportunities
for the UK by exploiting its science and innovation – an improved
understanding of the sea, greater co-ordination, a long-term approach to
decision making and the increasing global nature of the challenges we
face. Autonomous vessels, robotics and other emerging technologies are
creating a new generation of economic activity. They will allow us to
observe and map previously unexplored areas of the sea and improve our
understanding of the marine environment. The increase in potential from
autonomous vehicles means that areas such as data transfer, sensing,
communication technology and improved data transfer between autonomous
vehicles and satellites, will be of growing importance across the marine
economy. Science, industry and government all have a shared interest in a
productive, healthy and well-understood sea. There are many
opportunities for closer collaboration to achieve greater marine
exploration, protection and economic output. The marine environment changes over inherently long timescales and
emerging industries require a long-term commitment in order to
demonstrate success. For these reasons, a long-term approach to decision
making is important from both an economic and environmental perspective. Read the report: The full report from
the Government Office for Science can be found on the GOV
UK website here.
Grey reef shark's ecological role not to be poo-pooed, new study reveals
- ZSL
Working in the waters surrounding Palmyra Atoll, a remote reef and
wildlife refuge south of Hawaii, scientists used acoustic tags to track
the movements of the grey reef shark (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos)
- a predatory species known to be associated with coral environments,
but whose wider ecological role was previously not fully understood. © Katie Davis Combining their existing knowledge about the sharks' feeding habits
in open ocean (pelagic) environments, the team were able to estimate the
quantities of nitrogen deposited around the reef, via the sharks' faecal
material. Astonishingly, they discovered that this specific population
of reef sharks - believed to number around 8,300 - contributed to an
approximate total of 9.54kg of nitrogen into the reef ecosystem, each
day. This is a substantial amount of nutrients, which contribute to reef
primary productivity, "which in turn effectively act as a fertiliser for
thousands of other species that call these reef environments home", said
Dr David Jacoby, senior co-author from ZSL's institute of Zoology. Commenting on this study, Dr David Jacoby went on to say: "While
estimating quantities of shark poo may not sound like the most glamorous
of pastimes, the findings of this research have fascinating implications
for our understanding not only of fragile coral reef ecosystems but
also the ecological significance of grey reef sharks - a species
currently classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN Red List. "Coupled with their better-known role as predators, our study
underlines another, less obvious role played by reef sharks in improving
the resilience of these fragile habitats and again underlines the vital
importance of conserving these and other wide-ranging predators." Access the paper: Jessica J. Williams, Yannis P. Papastamatiou, Jennifer E. Caselle, Darcy Bradley, David M. P. Jacoby Mobile marine predators: an understudied source of nutrients to coral reefs in an unfished atoll DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.2456
Rural communities are being failed by Government
- House of Lords The Select Committee on the Natural Environment and Rural Communities
Act 2006 concludes that the Government has diminished the resources
given to departments and bodies which protect the UK's natural
environment and promote the needs of rural communities. The Committee
argues that this has had a profound, negative impact on England's
biodiversity, environment and the social and economic welfare of rural
areas, and must be addressed.
Chairman
of the Committee, Lord Cameron of Dillington said:"It is clear that the Government are failing to take proper account
of the needs of rural communities. Departmental decisions and
policies continue to demonstrate a lack of rural understanding among
Whitehall policymakers. Each and every Government department should be
required to think about the ways in which their policies affect rural
people, and the Government must take action to ensure that this
'rural-proofing' of policy happens. The Committee also heard
concerning evidence of the ongoing decline of biodiversity, species and
habitats. The 2006 Act, which created Natural England and introduced a
new biodiversity duty, was supposed to address this, but has failed to
do so. The biodiversity duty suffers from weak wording and poor
enforceability, whilst Natural England's status has been diluted and
weakened over recent years, so that it now struggles to perform all of
its key functions. The Government needs to act now, before our natural
environment, protected species and cherished landscapes suffer further
damage. Reaction:
House of Lords report supports public access
- Ramblers A report from the House of Lords Select Committee has recognised the
need to include public access as part of the reform of agricultural
payments, to support our network of National Trails for the long-term
and to promote responsible access to the countryside. At the inquiry, we highlighted the need to maintain the path network
and are encouraged to see that the new report recommends that
maintenance and enhancement of public access should form part of the new
system of agricultural payments. We're asking people to show their support for countryside access by signing
our petition, which we will submit to government in response to its
consultation on proposals for the future of food, farming and the
environment. This will shape the upcoming agriculture bill and have a
significant impact on the future of access to the countryside. We want
to ensure the bill includes measures which protect and enhance access to
the countryside. Response:
CLA comment on the Lords’ report scrutinising the Natural Environment
and Rural Communities Act 2006 A House of Lords Select Committee has recommended that the Ministry
for Housing, Communities and Local Government should take over
responsibility for rural policy from the Department for Environment,
Food and Rural Affairs. The CLA which represents landowners, farmers and rural
businesses reacted to the Lords’ report scrutinising the Natural
Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006. CLA Director of External Affairs Shane Brennan said: “The Committee
is right to highlight the impact of the loss of key agencies and the
focus central government puts on rural economic and community issues.
More can be done and the restructuring that Brexit requires is an
opportunity to do that. "Where the responsibility sits within Whitehall departments is less
important than there being a dedicated Minister to focus on championing
rural affairs across government. We are committed to working with the
Ministerial team to improve decision making on key issues from housing,
to business growth and delivering rural connectivity."
Environment Minister announces £600,000 for new Wales Coastal Monitoring
Centre – Welsh Government Minister for Environment Hannah Blythyn has today announced £600,000
of funding towards a new national Coastal Monitoring Centre. The Minister made the announcement at a meeting of the Welsh
Assembly’s Climate Change and Rural Affairs Committee.
Woodland Trust calls for greater protection for our ancients as Gilwell
Oak comes fifth in European Tree of the Year
– Woodland Trust The Gilwell Oak has come fifth in the European Tree of the Year
contest. It comes as the Woodland Trust calls for the same level of protection
for ancient and veteran trees as that proposed for ancient woodland in a
review of English Planning Policy. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Theresa May announced welcome
plans to overhaul England’s planning policy to afford ancient woodland
much stronger protection. New policy wording proposed by the Government in the revised National
Planning Policy Framework will state “development resulting in the loss
or deterioration of irreplaceable habitats such as ancient woodland
should be refused, unless there are wholly exceptional reasons.” However, ancient and veteran trees have been separated from ancient
woodland as ‘irreplaceable habitat’ for the first time, and were not
included in the policy amendments. Beccy Speight, Woodland Trust chief executive, said: “The UK has some of the best examples of ancient trees in Europe,
including the beautiful Gilwell Oak and we would like to thank everyone
who voted for it and of course offer our congratulations to the winners.
We are disappointed it didn’t garner more support as this perhaps
demonstrates a lack of understanding about the value these trees have in
our landscape and our cultural history. “There is now an opportunity to raise awareness of this value and
secure better protection for trees like this, and we need the public to
help us make it happen.
Tree sparrows take flight at Souter –
National Trust The red-listed tree sparrow is now thriving at The Leas and Whitburn
Coastal Park in South Tyneside, t
Numbers have grown from just one pair six years ago to 120 individual
birds this winter. The birds - with their red-brown crowns and black and white cheeks –
are successfully nesting and breeding on a three mile coastal strip of
land, cared for by the conservation charity. Numbers of the red listed birds nose-dived by a massive 93 per cent
between 1970 and 2008 largely due to intensive farming methods which
left little grain post-harvest in fields to provide feed for
over-wintering birds like the tree sparrow. Nationally there was genuine concern that bird numbers would ever
recover. However, two were spotted and successfully caught and
ringed by the Whitburn Ringing Group in spring 2012, followed by two
more pairs in 2013. Last year ten pairs were recorded with most ‘couples’ producing at
least two broods of five or six chicks. Formerly the site of the Whitburn Colliery, the Trust took on a
long-term lease of the coastal site from South Tyneside Council in 1990
and the creation of the 32 hectare Whitburn Coastal Park started in
1992. Working closely with volunteers and the Whitburn Coastal
Conservation Group (WCCG), the conservation charity has managed to
successfully re-wild the landscape over the past 25 years. The industrial waste ground and coal spoil that dominated the landscape in the 1960s and 1970s is now a wildlife rich haven planted with small woodland copses, wildflower meadows and scrub.
Breakthrough could aid development of bee-friendly pesticides Efforts to create pesticides that are not toxic to bees have been
boosted by a scientific
breakthrough.
Breakthrough could aid development of
bee-friendly pesticides (University of Exeter) The potential impact of neonicotinoids on bee health is a subject of
intensive research and considerable controversy, with the European Union
having restricted three compounds on crops that are attractive to bees
in 2013. However, both honeybees and bumblebees exhibit profound differences
in their sensitivity to different members of this insecticide class. The
researchers aimed to understand why this is, in order to aid the
development of pesticides that are non-toxic to them. Just as in other organisms, toxins in bees can be broken down by
enzymes called cytochrome P450s. The study identified one subfamily of
these enzymes in bees – CYP9Q – and found it was responsible for the
rapid breakdown of certain neonicotinoids. “Identifying these key enzymes provides valuable tools to screen new
pesticides early in their development to see if bees can break them
down,” said Professor
Chris Bass, who led the team at the University of Exeter. “It can take a decade and $260 million to develop a single pesticide,
so this knowledge can help us avoid wasting time and money on pesticides
that will end up with substantial use restrictions due to intrinsic bee
toxicity.” Dr Ralf Nauen, insect toxicologist and lead investigator of the study
at Bayer added: “Knowing the mechanisms contributing to inherent
tolerance helps us and regulators to better understand why certain
insecticides have a high margin of safety to bees”.
Local councils should improve the quality of footpaths so more people
can be active, says NICE NICE is calling on local councils to encourage people to be more
physically active by improving routes for pedestrians, cyclists and
other users.
Image: NICE Among a number of recommendations the guideline says councils should
ensure that footpaths and cycle routes are convenient, safe and
attractive to use. It says paths and cycle routes should be maintained
to a high standard, including the removal of any hazards like tree roots
and keeping obstructions such as parked cars, hanging baskets or bins
out of the way. NICE is also calling for additional support for those with limited
mobility. This could be people with disabilities, visual impairments or
those who may find it challenging to get around, such as parents using
prams. Recommendations for this group include providing step-free access
on public transport, such as buses or trains, to ensure that it is
accessible for everyone. Professor Mark Baker, director of the centre for guidelines at NICE,
said: “Handing back some of the roads to pedestrians and cyclists will
help people to become more active. Simple things such as ensuring street
lights along footpaths are working and hedges are kept trimmed makes
walking a more attractive option which will lead to people living
healthier lives. People with limited mobility need extra help from their
surroundings such as adapted crossings, public transport that can be
used with a wheelchair and step free access. With a little thought these
measures can be designed into our public spaces to help everyone be more
active.” The guidance says councils should make more areas pedestrian only and
refer to NICE’s recent guidance on air pollution which advised that
smoother driving would reduce fumes, and help improve air quality. Reaction:
New national guideline to improve the environment for walking and
cycling – Paths for All We welcome the new ‘Physical activity and the environment’ guideline
published by NICE this week. The guideline sets a standard for local
councils, transport providers and those responsible for open spaces to
improve the environment to support the general population to get more
active.
Great Pacific Garbage Patch Growing Rapidly, Study Shows
– The Ocean Cleanup New analysis reveals the region contains as much as sixteen times
more plastic than previously estimated, with pollution levels increasing
exponentially.
Delft, the Netherlands, March 22, 2018 - 1.8 trillion pieces of
plastic weighing 80,000 metric tons are currently afloat in an area
known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch - and it is rapidly getting
worse. These are the main conclusions of a three year mapping effort
conducted by an international team of scientists affiliated with The
Ocean Cleanup Foundation, six universities and an aerial sensor company.
Their findings were published today in the journal Scientific Reports. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), located halfway between
Hawaii and California, is the largest accumulation zone for ocean
plastics on Earth. Conventionally, researchers have used single,
fine-meshed nets, typically less than a meter in size, in an attempt to
quantify the problem. However, this method yields high uncertainty
because of the small surface area that is covered. Additionally, these
methods could not measure the magnitude of the problem to its fullest
extent, because all sampling nets - small and large - were unable to
capture objects greater than the size of the net. In order to analyze the full extent of the GPGP, the team conducted
the most comprehensive sampling effort of the GPGP to date by crossing
the debris field with 30 vessels simultaneously, supplemented by two
aircraft surveys. Although most vessels were equipped with standard
surface sampling nets, the fleet's mothership RV Ocean Starr also
trawled two six-meter-wide devices, which allowed the team to sample
medium to large-sized objects. To increase the surface area surveyed, and quantify the largest
pieces of plastic - objects that include discarded fishing nets several
meters in size - a C-130 Hercules aircraft was fitted with advanced
sensors to collect multispectral imagery and 3D scans of the ocean
garbage. The fleet collected a total of 1.2 million plastic samples,
while the aerial sensors scanned more than 300 km2 of ocean surface.
The results, published today in Scientific Reports, reveal that the
GPGP, defined as the area with more than 10 kg of plastic per km2,
measures 1.6 million square kilometers, three times the size of
continental France.
£260 million of clean air funding launched by government
- Defra A £220 million Clean Air Fund to tackle roadside emissions is part of
a £260m plus package to improve air quality A package of funding worth more than £260 million has today been
launched by the government to help improve air quality in some of the
most polluted areas. The UK Plan for Tackling Roadside Nitrogen Dioxide Concentrations was
produced by the government in July last year, and outlined that councils
with the worst levels of air pollution at busy road junctions and
hotspots must take robust action in the shortest time possible. Fulfilling a commitment to support local authorities to deliver these
plans, the government has today launched a £220m Clean Air Fund to
minimise the impact of local plans on individuals and businesses. A
range of options local authorities could consider to utilise this money
such as new park and ride services, freight consolidation centres,
concessionary travel schemes and improvements to bus fleets have been
set out. At the same time, more than £40 million from the £255 million
Implementation Fund has been awarded to support local authorities take
action as soon as possible to improve air quality. Nationwide school science programme helps scientists discover effects of climate change on soils - BTO
This ongoing study, supported by EDF Energy and the British Trust for
Ornithology (BTO), has been able to identify that dry summer weather may
be putting some of our favourite bird species at risk as it triggers a
significant drop in the number of earthworms and invertebrates in parts
of the UK. The research, undertaken by thousands of schoolchildren in a
nationwide science project to understand the effects of climate change
on our soils and ecosystems, published some if its findings today in a
new report in an international scientific journal. Scientific publications Mirta Zupan et al (2018)
How good is your marine protected area at curbing threats?
Biological Conservation https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2018.03.013
Martay, B. & Pearce-Higgins, J. W. (2018)
Using data from schools to model variation in soil invertebrates across
the UK: The importance of weather, climate, season and habitat.
Pedobiologia. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedobi.2018.01.002 |
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CJS is not responsible for content of external sites. Details believed correct but given without prejudice. Disclaimer: the views expressed in these news pages do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of CJS. |
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The
Craigend primary is a School of Conservation with pupils learning about,
and campaigning on, a range of environmental issues.
this
will act as a corridor to another woodland in Plas Newydd which will
link to another squirrel bridge back over the A4080 to another woodland
at Coed Llwynonn.
Evergen
Systems, the exclusive UK supplier of CityTree.
A new £27 million scheme is open for applicants to help improve the
country's waterways
Sharks
transfer crucial nutrients from their open ocean feeding grounds, to
shallower coral reefs via their faeces - according to a pioneering study
that is published today in the journal 
he
site of an abandoned colliery, which has been turned into a haven for
birds.
A
joint study by the University of Exeter, Rothamsted Research and Bayer
AG has discovered the enzymes in honeybees and bumblebees that determine
how sensitive they are to different neonicotinoid pesticides.
NICE’s
updated guidance on physical activity and the environment published
today (22 March) aims to help people be more active through improvements
to the built environment and public transport and better access to the
countryside.
