The UK Governments’ reasonable worst-case planning assumptions under a no deal Brexit were published in the ‘Operation Yellowhammer’ papers last week. On the question of fisheries, they estimate that up to 282 EU and EEA nations fishing vessels could enter illegally, or already be fishing in UK waters on day one. Up to 129 vessels […]
Plastic pollution of the marine environment, of which food and drink packaging is a significant contributor, has captured public interest over the past two years, and the Government has set out its ambitions to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by the end of 2042. In the backlash against plastic, other materials are being increasingly used as […]
Most organochlorinated contaminants were banned in developed countries in the 1970s and 1980s. However, their chemical properties favour long-range transport and persistence in water, air and biota, including the deepest ocean fauna. Studies of cetaceans in Europe have reported bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, with markedly elevated Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) concentrations in their blubber. “Hotspots” include […]
An estimated 92% of the UK seagrass beds have been lost in the last century. This summer seeds were collected from existing meadows around the British Isles by a group of volunteers led by Swansea University. They have been sorted and are being prepared to be planted this winter in Dale Bay, Pembrokeshire. Historically this […]