IMECH Policy: This summer has presented the UK with the hottest and driest summer since 1976, a year well remembered for melting tarmac and long, hot summer’s days. The UK experienced average temperatures in June of 19.9ºC, the same as in 1976. When this is combined with June being one of the top five driest […]
Three articles Ofwat fines Thames over leakage, United Utilities cancel their hosepipe ban and Yorkshire focus on leakage detection to meet future demand. The heatwave and drought has drawn the spotlight of publicity and attention on the water companies. Ofwat confirms £120m package of payments and penalties for Thames Water following leakage failures Following consultation, […]
Forty-year study shows loss of invertebrates, with repercussions for larger animals Guardian Steven Morris: ‘One of the longest-running studies of streams in the world – the minute study of 14 brooks that tumble through a remote Welsh mountain landscape – has exposed a troubling loss of riverine wildlife. Ecologists working on the Llyn Brianne Observatory project in […]
Cormier, R., Elliott, M., and Kannen, A. 2018. IEC/ISO Bow-tie analysis of marine legislation: A case study of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. ICES Cooperative Research Report No. 342. 56 pp. Foreword: ICES Working Group on Marine Planning and Coastal Zone Management (WGMPCZM) terms of reference are based on a long history of work and […]
The fortunes of seabirds around the UK at present are prompting different coverage. In two articles the worrying nature of sea bird populations off Shetland is highlighted whilst Defra announced new protection for Yorkshire’s seabird colonies. Changes to water temperature, plankton and sand eel populations are having very significant effects on different seabird colonies. […]
Guardian Robin McKie ‘Wildlife in most of the lawless high seas faces an existential threat from fishing, shipping and the military. Next month, a landmark UN conference could finally bring hope. “Outside national waters, in the high seas, it is essentially a no man’s land when it comes to protecting sensitive environments and their inhabitants,” […]
Protecting the Loch Carron flame shell bed showed the way An important consultation on how we protect the wider marine environment Overview The project to improve protection given to PMFs outside the MPA network was initiated in May 2017. This followed an incident in Loch Carron in April 2017 when a flame shell bed was […]
Recommendations to inform a UK ocean acidification monitoring strategy This report provides advice and recommendations on how the UK could contribute to the effort to measuring OA at a whole-ocean level. This report was written by the Defra Science Advisory Council Ocean Acidification sub group.