02 Feb 2021

Mark Avery – An active campaigner for the protection of peat has written an extensive blog on the Defra announcement. The announcement is good news – it regulates the environmental harm caused by burning of vegetation on peat soils, mostly upland peat soils. What is the harm? The harm is manifold: blanket bog is a […]

15 Dec 2020

Deadliest plastics: bags and packaging biggest marine life killers, study finds Wide-ranging review finds whales, dolphins, turtles and seabirds at mortal risk from marine debris Review Abstract Pollution by plastic and other debris is a problem affecting the world’s oceans and is increasing through time. The problem is so large that prioritizing solutions to effect […]

29 Sep 2020

UK marine policy statement MMO/Defra ‘This Marine Policy Statement (MPS) is the framework for preparing Marine Plans and taking decisions affecting the marine environment.  The Marine Policy Statement will contribute to the achievement of sustainable development in the United Kingdom marine area. It has been prepared and adopted for the purposes of section 44 of […]

07 Jul 2020

Our world is changing rapidly and so are water services. Innovation is key to guaranteeing the affordability of safe, sustainable and resilient water services for the decades to come. Water service providers are well aware of the challenges and have identified a number of technological and non-technological areas requiring particular innovation efforts with a view […]

18 May 2019

Defra ‘Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey has published the first progress report of its landmark 25 Year Environment Plan indicating that, in the first year alone, 90 per cent of the plan’s actions have been delivered or are being progressed. Over the last 12 months, the government, amongst other actions, has: set out plans to ban […]

30 Apr 2019

Piers Larcombe ‘Peter Ridd & I have just published a reply to Schaffelke et al’s comments. As with all science, judge the logic and argument, and critically, the evidence. Transparent evidence-based discussion about the quality of science, especially that used to support government spending, is a very serious issue, relevant to all scientists, taxpayers, policymakers […]

20 May 2018

Once upon a time (over ten years ago) Government had a coastal policy with supporting documentation. This useful document is a helpful reminder of the topics they should be covering; some of the topics they include are as follows: Coastal narrative: the distinctive challenges of the coast Employment – seasonality and opportunities Demographics and imbalance […]