Newspaper
100 answers needed now
The Landscape Institute has applauded a move by 650 experts to draw up a list of the 100 most pressing ecological questions facing Britain today.
In an attempt to encourage policy-makers to make more decisions based on the available scientific evidence and focus research efforts on the biggest issues, representatives from 28 policy organisations, together with scientists from ten academic institutions, originally formulated more than 1,000 questions. This initial list was then reduced to a short list of 100 questions of significant policy relevance during a two-day workshop at the University of East Anglia and was published in a report last month in the Journal of Applied Ecology.
In the introduction, the report said: “The popular perception amongst many ecological practitioners and researchers is that policies are often developed without sound evidence derived from research and that the results that are produced are not used to the extent that they could be to inform decision-making.
“Narrowing this gap would be very beneficial in generating policies that are based more objectively on sound science. Conversely, it is desirable that research should be more clearly directed at issues that influence policies.”
Helen Woolley, chair of the Landscape Institute’s Research committee, welcomed the initiative saying “any policy that is informed by research is a stronger policy”.
However, she said that it was important that policy makers understood that research was undertaken by many bodies, not just universities and that the value of practice-based research was often overlooked. “There are a number of research projects completed or underway that will address these and other questions,” she said. “Some are being carried out by development agencies for example and Landscape Institute-registered practices and members undertake major research projects relevant to this initiative.
“The next step would be to appoint a national body to undertake a scoping study to find out the detail of what exactly is already being done in research, policy and practice and then to identify the gaps to commission further research.”
The list of questions covers 14 topics in all, including climate change, farming, urban development and energy generation and carbon management. In doing so, it re-ignites existing scientific arguments, such as the effect of marine wind farms on seabird populations and the threats to UK biodiversity posed by genetically modified organisms.
It also explores some new, highly charged issues, such as what ecological impacts (both direct and indirect, through shifts in habitat management) the ban on hunting with dogs might be having and how conventional, integrated and organic farming methods compare in terms of their effects on biodiversity.
Regarding the questions, Woolley thought that climate change is an essential focus, but that research tended to be concerned with effects and prevention. She said: “More attention needs to be paid to amelioration and management. This is where the skills and specialisms of landscape architects have a lot to offer. There is already a considerable amount of work being done in these areas that has not yet reached government policy and decision makers.” Discuss this article
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