Earlier this year Defra announced a review to examine whether and how the strongest protections for areas of sea, known as Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs), could be introduced. The review, led by Richard Benyon MP, which will run to early 2020, is considering the waters for which the Secretary of State has responsibility: the […]
Developers of a 600m long free-floating boom to collect plastic from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch have reported a successful trial after an earlier setback when the boom broke. The boon acts as a barrier floating on the surface with a three metre-deep (10ft) screen below it, which is intended to trap some of the […]
Scientists have warned that existing levels of tuna fishing are unsustainable after researchers found that global catches have increased more than 1,000% over the past 60 years. A study in the journal Fisheries Research estimated that about 6m tonnes of tuna are now caught annually, a rate that “risks driving tuna populations to unsustainable levels […]
Global warming has already reached 1°C above the pre-industrial level, due to past and current greenhouse gas emissions. There is overwhelming evidence that this is resulting in profound consequences for ecosystems and people. The ocean is warmer, more acidic and less productive. Melting glaciers and ice sheets are causing sea level rise, and coastal extreme […]
North Sea cod was awarded a certificate of sustainability by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) two years ago, but the latest news is these certificates are going to be suspended because of stocks dropping below the safe biological level. The latest scientific advice from ICES is that the stock is below the safe biological level […]
How might fishing and farming policies be created to protect employment opportunities and the environment after Brexit? Scientists and key figures present their ideas in a paper for the British Ecological Society. The paper highlights the need for UK policy makers to adopt an “ecosystem based” approach, which prioritises the protection of natural assets and […]
The UK has announced a new global alliance to help drive urgent action to safeguard the world’s ocean and protect its precious wildlife. The Global Ocean Alliance will push for the trebling of existing globally-agreed targets so at least a third of the ocean is safeguarded in Marine Protected Areas over the next decade. It […]
The Royal Research Ship (RRS) Sir David Attenborough, formally named last week, was commissioned to replace the James Clark Ross and the Ernest Shackleton, which between them gave almost 50 years’ service in support of UK polar science. It was commissioned by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) – part of UK Research and Innovation, […]