UK Blue Carbon Research Questions
Natural England, Natural Resources Wales, NatureScot and DAERA have developed a spreadsheet containing the evidence needs, relating to coastal ecosystems around the UK, including for blue carbon habitats, to inform appropriate conservation management. This spreadsheet focuses on those evidence needs that relate directly (and indirectly) to saltmarsh, estuaries, mudflat, sea grass and saline lagoons across environmental, social, and economic subject areas (with a separate spreadsheet focusing on evidence needs for sand dunes and shingle).
All four organisations recognise the importance of having access to high quality evidence that considers the interactions between nature and how people use it. This information is vital for our work ensuring that decisions and advice are based on the best available understanding of how our environment works to mitigate pressures/impacts as far as possible.
We work in partnership with researchers, for example by directly commissioning key projects; but we also work closely with research bodies, for example by co-supervising student PhD projects to help meet our evidence needs. It is hoped that the evidence needs spreadsheet will provide a basis for further conversation to develop research projects that have real-world application. This gives us an opportunity to work with researchers to develop the project scope, aims, and objectives so that we can ensure that it maximises its impact informing projects both locally and across the UK.
To be successful in recovering nature, we need high quality, relevant and up to date evidence that is actively and confidently applied by all of us. This means we need, amongst other things, to understand what changes are happening in the natural environment and what interventions and actions work well.
The spreadsheet of research questions can be downloaded below: