conservation - search results

Coastal projects have been awarded funding to help restore local landmarks and return them to a high standard… Communities Minister Mark Francois has revealed 15 projects have benefit from a share of £700,000 funding to restore local landmarks. The projects, which have been awarded up to £50,000 each, aim to...

Richard Bergström, Director General of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), highlights the importance of collaborative efforts to tackle antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents one of the most significant threats to global public health and also one against which the pharmaceutical industry is committed to fighting....

Daniel Bastreri, marine consultant with Thomson Unicomarine, considers whether the complete removal offshore structures during decommissioning is the best solution for marine ecology. The benefits of leaving disused offshore installations in the North Sea should be re-examined in light of years of data and information from monitoring programmes for the...

Carbon sequestration is a concept that has been pervasive in discussions of climate change research and policy. The idea is simple enough. Any process, for example photosynthesis, that extracts CO2 from the atmosphere and stores it somewhere else will reduce the greenhouse effect and therefore should be encouraged. One...

Matt Aitkenhead, a Member at the British Society of Soil Science sheds light on soils and their role in society and economic development…  The importance of soil to people who work the land or study it is obvious, but this importance often remains hidden in political and economic debates. Partly...

Guadalupe Rojas, Juan. A. Morales-Ramos, Jian Chen, Michael Grodowitz, and Margaret Allen discuss the hurdles of Biological Control to control the Red Imported Fire Ant. The red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, is one of the most successful invasive ants and it is regarded as one of the world’s worst invasive...

Nate Bauer and Hajo Eicken from the International Arctic Research Center (IARC), highlight how research can help gain invaluable knowledge about the Arctic and its surrounding environments Across the Arctic, researchers continue to identify signals that the region and its ecosystems act as an important amplifier of global climate change. While the...

Residents in Herefordshire can discover how energy efficient their homes are via a new online heat map… If you live in Herefordshire and want to know how efficient your home is a new heat map released by the council can tell you. Herefordshire Council carried out a heat survey across parts...

Tom Sauer joined the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) as a Research Associate at the National Soil Tilth Laboratory (NSTL) in Ames, Iowa in the fall of 1993. He had just obtained his PhD in environmental biophysics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison under the direction of...

Miles McEvoy, Deputy Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Organic Program outlines the importance of organic farming for the U.S The organic sector is one of the fastest-growing segments of U.S. agriculture, and consumer demand continues to increase. Today, there are more than 19,000 certified organic farms and...

Gavin Whitmore, Biodiversity Manager at the European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) explains the importance of crop protection for sustainable agriculture Pesticides are perhaps one of the most misunderstood technologies used in modern agriculture. There are currently no viable alternatives to chemical crop protection, and in spite of an enormous volume of...

Arthropods are characterised by the presence of an exoskeleton and articulated legs. The phylum Arthropoda includes more than 80% of the known species with many of these being important agricultural pests. Arthropods, such as insects and mites, inflict billions of dollars in damage worldwide every year. Tons of pesticides...

Suzanne Sharrock, Director of Global Programmes at the Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) discusses the impact of climate change on plants There is unequivocal evidence that the Earth’s climate is warming at an unprecedented rate. Recent reports show that the Earth has warmed by about 0.74°C in the last 100...

Museums, libraries, and archives in Wales are set to receive a £2.7m boost... Following recommendations made in a Culture and Poverty report by Kay Andrews, £2.7m is set to be invested in museums, libraries, and archives in Wales. The report, which was published in March 2014, examined how social justice could...

With population growth, urbanisation and economic development, the demand for freshwater in urban areas are increasing throughout Europe. At the same time, climate change and pollution are also affecting the availability of water for city residents, as discussed here by The European Environment Agency… In July 2011 intense rains left...

Bryn Kewley, Campaigner at the Energy Bill Revolution explores the facts behind our fuel poverty crises and calls on the next government to make home energy efficiency a national infrastructure spending priority… Shortly after the 7th May one man will hold the keys to No.10 Downing Street. The question is...

Victoria Bankes Price, Planning Advisor at the Woodland Trust examines the Biodiversity Duty for Public Authorities and highlights how guidance is lacking in useful information… In addressing The Biodiversity Duty for Public Authorities, just how much guidance does the ‘guidance’ provide? “Every public authority must, in exercising its functions, have regard,...

Only put in what you want to get out: Clare McDermott, from the Soil Association describes how an organic system keeps it natural… Organic is a term defined by law. Any food labelled as organic must meet a strict set of standards so even if produce has been grown organically, to...

Prof Dr Henk W Broer and Dr Alef E Sterk from the University of Groningen discuss how mathematical modelling offers a fruitful approach towards understanding climatic extremes… Dynamical systems are mathematical models for everything that evolves in time. For example springs and pendulum clocks. More complicated examples are the atmosphere...

Karmenu Vella, Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries at the European Commission gives an overview of his priorities for the coming year… The overall aim of the new European Commission, in office since November 2014, is to help improve the everyday lives of people across the continent. Creating and investing...