Parliamentary recognition of the importance and decline of invertebrates
The importance of invertebrates to the environment and food security has received a significant mark of recognition from the House of Commons Science, Innovation...
EcoFABs could lead to better bioenergy crops, say researchers
A greater understanding of how plants and microbes work together to store vast amounts of atmospheric carbon in the soil will help in the...
Mutable mandate? Sizing up the new BNG requirements
New requirements for construction projects to achieve a 10% net gain in biodiversity or habitats came into force on 12 February. The scheme is...
Is the Amazon forest approaching a tipping point?
Global warming may be interacting with regional rainfall and deforestation to accelerate forest loss in the Amazon, pushing it towards partial or total collapse.
Research...
Survey reveals 185 hectares of newly discovered seagrass beds across the UK
Over the summer of 2023, volunteers recorded 185 hectares of unmapped seagrass meadows in shallow UK coastal waters, in a new annual survey which...
Underwater robot to reduce costs and environmental impact for ships
A marine sector startup is developing an underwater robot that the group says can substantially reduce fuel costs, maintenance needs and environmental impact for...
Molecular sensor enables water bear hardiness by triggering dormancy
Free radicals sensor triggers tardigrades to enter dehydrated tun state to withstand extreme stress
Tardigrades – hardy, microscopic animals commonly known as “water bears” –...
Seagrass planting robot to reinstate vanishing ocean meadows and tackle climate change
A team of young engineers is launching a £100,000 project to build a robot that will plant seagrass to help fight climate change, thanks...
Emergency authorisation of bee-killing pesticide is a “deathblow” says charity group
(Text: The Wildlife Trusts)
On 18th January 2024, the UK Government’s Farming Minister, Mark Spencer, approved ‘emergency’ authorisation for the use of the highly damaging...
What happens to biodegradable plastics if they enter the sea? New study
Plymouth Marine Laboratory writes
Our new study investigates what happens when biodegradable plastics enter the ocean, and whether these increasingly popular alternatives to conventional plastics...
Increasing number of local authorities require over 10% Biodiversity Net Gain
In advance of the statutory requirement for biodiversity net gain (BNG) for new developments from January 2024, new research appears to reveal a gradual...
Accounting for plastic persistence can minimize environmental impacts
Researchers have developed a sustainability metric for the ecological design of plastic products that have low persistence in the environment.
Adhering to this metric could...
Is it time to declare a ‘lunar Anthropocene’?
Such status would heighten awareness of potential environmental problems, and advance efforts to mitigate the deleterious human impacts and growing presence of waste from...
New report highlights role of ecoacoustics in monitoring wildlife
A new report seems to reveal that Ecoacoustic Bird Survey (EBS) methods increase the detection of bird species, and should be used in combination...
Housing crisis poses threat to survival of rural communities, CPRE report warns
An acute and overlooked shortage of genuinely affordable housing poses a threat to the survival of communities in rural England, says a report published...
Nature critical to infrastructure for sustainable development: UN report
Nature-based infrastructure solutions can influence 79% of all targets across the Sustainable Development Goals, highlighting the critical role nature can play in advancing sustainable...
Aquaculture system turns waste wood into nutritious seafood
Researchers hoping to rebrand a marine pest as a nutritious food have developed the world’s first system of farming shipworms, which they have renamed...
Rare leech recorded in Dumfries and Galloway
One of the rarest invertebrates in Scotland, the Medicinal Leech (Hirudo medicinalis), has been confirmed in Dumfries and Galloway for the first time, after...
Biodiversity benefits of rewilding to be “irrefutably demonstrated” by ag-tech AI partnership
Launching at a time when prominent Royals have just been widely reported expressing opinions on what they see as negative impacts of rewilding, a...
Bees cannot taste even lethal levels of pesticides, says new study
New research from the University of Oxford appears to reveal that bumblebees cannot taste pesticides present in nectar, even at lethal concentrations. This means...