The Tidal Lagoon Challenge, initiated as a Programme for Government commitment, aims to position Wales as a global hub for emerging marine technologies. Launched in June 2024, it allocated a £750,000 grant fund to projects targeting two main objectives: overcoming barriers to tidal lagoon development; and quantifying potential benefits. Examples included addressing environmental uncertainties and […]
Private sector funding for English nature recovery projects took a major step forward today with Lloyds Banking Group becoming the first organisation to provide funding through the government-developed Projects for Nature platform. Projects for Nature (PFN) aims to connect businesses and other donors with 25 English quality nature projects, to help close the nature finance […]
One Home has created an interactive map to highlight the 21 English coastal communities most at risk of coastal erosion, which is accelerating because of the climate crisis. These include seaside villages in Cornwall, Cumbria, Dorset, East Yorkshire, Essex, Kent, the Isle of Wight, Northumberland, Norfolk and Sussex, amounting to 2,218 properties that are together […]
The Office for Environmental Protection is investigating the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Secretary of State (SoS) and Natural England over possible failures to comply with environmental law in relation to Special Protection Areas (SPAs) for wild birds, it has announced. The investigation will seek to determine whether Defra SoS and Natural […]
By Samantha Garrard, Senior Marine Ecosystem Services Researcher at Plymouth Marine Laboratory. Plastic has been found in every single part of the ocean, from the surface to the seafloor and from the tropics to the poles. Land-based sources of plastic account for the majority of this pollution, with plastic bags, bottles, wrappers, food containers and cutlery among […]
Nestlé Purina PetCare Europe is taking a proactive approach to combat the declining health of the ocean, launching its inaugural Ocean Restoration Programme. This initiative aims to address marine biodiversity loss in Europe by partnering with expert organizations to restore 1,500 hectares of marine habitats – equivalent to around 3,700 football pitches – by 2030. […]
Experts from across the UK met for the first time in Cardiff as part of the new Severn Estuary Commission to re-examine the potential for a world leading tidal energy scheme in the area. Alongside this, the commission will be publishing a new report from the consultants WSP explaining why there is now a case […]
Protected areas are set to cover one-third of oceans by 2030 yet rigorous empirical estimates of the relative performance of different marine protected area (MPA) types are few, so states a new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The study compares the benefits from no-take vs. multiple-use MPAs, providing insights […]