08 Jun 2021
The headline in the Guardian was clear ‘the UK ranked last in Europe for bathing water quality in 2020’. The European Environment Agency report put UK at the bottom of its list of reporting countries. However, as Defra & Water UK were quick to point out Covid limited the ability of UK to complete the […]
08 Jun 2021
This latest Thames water major pollution incident is a timely reminder for the Environmental Audit Committee and their work on water quality in rivers (watch the evidence) of the growing risks of major storms driving significant pollution events. Thames Water has depressing recent record of sewage pollution incidents. Thames Water fined £4 million after catastrophic […]
08 Jun 2021
There is a torrent of information on the Defra website at present in connection with sustainable farming standards, including on how land managers can create lakes and ponds to benefit wildlife and improve the landscape. Defra ‘Sustainable Farming Incentive pilot: environmental outcomes and benefits The 8 standards include one on ‘Water Body Buffering’ will help […]
08 Jun 2021
Direct air capture (DAC) and greenhouse gas removal programme In June 2020 the Prime Minister announced up to £100 million of new research and development funding to help develop direct air capture technologies in the UK. As part of this, the innovation competition seeks to support the development of Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR) technologies to […]
08 Jun 2021
Natural Capital Evidence Handbook: to support place-based planning and decision-making – NERR092 (naturalengland.org.uk) This report and associated publications is about how to come to shared strategic understanding about the natural environment, in a place, using a natural capital evidence base. It is about working collaboratively and in partnership so that we can do more to […]
03 Jun 2021
Last week there were 3 reports on Nature Based Solutions – from the British Ecological Society, a Group of Universities and the US Army Corps of Engineers This week there is a big report from the EU with a huge appendix of case studies Evaluating the impact of nature-based solutions – An EU handbook for […]
03 Jun 2021
Ofwat ‘Executive summary Facing into the future We face an immediate challenge. Our water sector needs to tackle demands from climate change, customers’ increasing expectations for service and the treatment of the environment, and the pressures on people’s ability to pay. Climate change threatens resilience, both of our networks and our water supply. We’re already […]
03 Jun 2021
Guardian ‘ Conservation watchdog given boost after decade of funding cuts that left it at ‘crisis point’ Natural England, the government’s conservation watchdog, is to receive a 47% increase in government funding this year as its role expands to support a “green recovery” and provide environmental scrutiny of the government’s controversial “Project Speed”. The dramatic […]
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