The BBC reports on thousands of spills at US oil and gas fracking sites. According to published research, up to 16% of hydraulically fractured oil and gas wells spill liquids every year. Scientists found that there had been 6,600 releases from these fracked wells over a ten-year period in four states. The biggest problems were […]
Ofwat’s Cathryn Ross has set out the regulator’s key themes for PR19. The first is customer service, with Ofwat expecting to see a step change from companies, “no longer an analogue service in a digital age”. The second is resilience, where companies should “anticipate and respond to shocks related to networks, ecosystems and communities”. The […]
In this talk to the NFU conference Andrea Leadsom has outlined the Government’s principles with reference to the CFP. It doesn’t provide detail but importantly ‘environment’ is highlighted as the third principle (see blow). For those looking for clues re CFP a statement to this effect would be a good start and the inclusion of […]
If you can ignore the project acronym this is a really interesting exercise to help inform the location of renewables. Using ecosystem services & participation to inform the spatial planning of offshore wind ‘The CORPORATES project builds community understanding of and dialogue about the range of ecosystem services provided by the Firth of Forth marine […]
Scenario analysis explores the options & trade-offs of different options ‘Introduction The Celtic Seas are under significant pressure from human activities. There has been progress in tackling some pressures such as point source pollution, but declines in some elements of biodiversity continue, linked to both human activity pressures and climate change. There are a number […]
Innovative wind power company Dounreay Trì has awarded the construction contract for a novel floating wind farm approximately 9km off the northern coast of Scotland to Scottish energy service company, Global Energy Group, subject to approval by Marine Scotland and the Scottish Government. The Dounreay Trì floating wind demonstration project will comprise a single semi-submersible platform with two five-megawatt wind turbines, […]
Thanks to Chris Williams – New Economics Foundation (NEF) The Marine Socio Economics Project Newsletters provide a goldmine of information on environmental and fisheries management related issues. The February issue includes: Ecologist Special Report Parts I & II: Governing Marine Protected Areas http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_analysis/2988568/ecologist_special_report_part_i_gover ning_marine_protected_areas.html Electric pulse fisheries face certain environmental challenges A report developed by […]
Globally the trend is towards fewer, larger fishing boats, and a concentration of fishing rights in fewer hands, making it hard for smaller fishing operations to compete. There are often trade-offs between the social, environmental and economic value of fishing. A new fresh approach to fishing is needed, so that the industry brings the biggest […]