ECNNews Spring 2001 The newsletter of the UK Environmental Change Network No. 13 The Environmental Change Network (ECN) is a UK multi-agency research programme co-ordinated by the Natural Environment Research Council Foot-and-mouth The environmental consequences? ver the past few months we have all been made · Changes in surface water chemistry resulting from O aware of the devastating effects of the UK's foot- changes in grazing and associated management and-mouth epidemic on agriculture, tourism and rural activities, e.g. use of fertilisers economies. As we go to press the Ministry of · Reduced visitor pressures. Agriculture Fisheries and Food (MAFF) figures show that there have been 1,599 cases and 2,679,000 animals The foot-and-mouth outbreak has also affected research slaughtered in response. and monitoring at ECN sites (see page 7). But as things return to normal the ECN Network The epidemic has already had should be able to provide environmental consequences. Some of some of the data and “... in the short term we might ... information necessary to see environmental effects understand these resulting from the reduced impacts. numbers, and restricted movement, of grazing animals in infected areas.” CEH © these, such as the environmental health issues associated with the burning and burying of carcasses have been widely discussed in the media. But others have received less attention. For instance, in Photo: John Adamson, the short term we might also see A sheep exclosure on environmental effects resulting from the reduced ECN Moor House, clearly showing the numbers, and restricted movement, of grazing animals effects of grazing on in infected areas. These effects might include: vegetation. An example of things to · Changes in vegetation and fauna come? · Changes in atmospheric chemistry - for instance, lower levels of atmospheric deposition of nitrogen The map shows the location of ECN sites in relation to infected areas. l - terrestrial sites, n - lake sites, • - river sites. Infected where grazer densities have been severely reduced areas are taken from MAFF web site, www.maff.gov.uk Contents Science, Society Fabulous ground ECN & water The PRU database International & education beetles & ECN quality indicators Conference update 3 4-5 6 7 8 Plus: News – Web site awards & update – ECN & foot-and-mouth – ECN & CS2000 1 News ECN: Award winning web! he ECN web site has won three awards since February they are included on the Schoolzone site. The final award is T 2000. The first is from Britannica.com. This site from SciLinks, an initiative by the US-based National Science combines the content of the Encyclopædia Britannica with a Teachers Association to connect textbooks to useful online guide to the “Web’s best sites” to help users find the content. Web sites are assessed by a team of teachers before information they need. The second is from Schoolzone, a site they are included on the site. SciLinks considered the ECN created by a group of teachers and parents to provide links to web site to be “one of excellence”. safe, non-commercial Internet material for school pupils. www.britannica.com/ www.schoolzone.co.uk/ Web sites are assessed and rated by a panel of teachers before www.scilinks.org/ Earth Systems Science Summer School n Earth System Science Summer School (ES4) will be dynamic processes that link their biotic and abiotic A held in September 2001 at the University of East Anglia. components; and (2) to enable environmental researchers to As well as guest lectures and poster sessions, topics will appreciate how their own specialised studies fit into a broader cover the whole of the Earth's System from the global water context (particularly important for those at the start of their and biogeochemical cycles to socio-economic aspects of careers). ES4 will involve a wide range of expert lecturers global change. Organised by the Universities of East Anglia and, through discussions and practical exercises, encourage and Reading, ES4 will promote an interdisciplinary and all course participants (students and lecturers) to widen their integrated approach for environmental research. The course is scientific linkages. intended for graduate students at the end of their 1st or 2nd years of study as well as research workers and policy makers The course is funded by NERC and support is available for from universities, research institutes, government and selected NERC graduate students and staff. The course fee is industry. £1000 with accommodation and food £520 extra. For further information please contact Louise Bohn, School of ES4 aims are: (1) to provide training in Earth system science Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, through 'state-of-the-art' presentations on key topics that Norfolk, NR4 7TJ, UK. E-mail: [email protected] address the interactions of different environments, and the New on the ECN Web Site: 8 A web site map 8 ‘Real-time’ weather pages now allow site comparisons 8 Weekly photos from ECN Cairngorms 8 The PRU database is now online (see page 7) 8 Re-designed climate change indicators pages, now incorporating a direct link to the The site is averaging 1,330 hits (157 visitor database to view the most current data sessions per day). New site manager at Snowdon Annual vegetation surveying and CS2000 Matt Murphy (Countryside Council for Wales) took up Last summer we continued to record year-to-year changes in the post of site manager at the Y Wyddfa/Snowdon ECN vegetation at ten terrestrial ECN sites, with support from site in the summer of 2000. The site is operated jointly by DETR, following up work carried out as part of the CCW and the National Assembly for Wales. Matt can be Countryside Survey 2000 (CS2000) programme. contacted on 01248 385652, or e-mail: m.murphy@ccw. gov.uk. The results of CS2000 were unveiled in November 2000 by the Environment Minister, Michael Meacher. They are Deer research at Wytham published by DETR in the report Accounting for nature: Stephen Ellwood started a research studentship study ing assessing habitats in the UK countryside. deer populations at Wytham Woods in October, funded by the British Deer Society. He is supervised jointly by Mike Morecroft (Wytham ECN site manager) and Prof. Monitoring of vegetation at ECN sites has provided valuable David MacDonald (Oxford University). Stephen has information on year-to-year variation in vegetation. The already worked with Mike and Michele Taylor at Wytham results show that, whilst variations do occur, the Countryside to help develop deer monitoring methods. Surveys, which are repeated every 6-8 years, are still a valid means of assessing long-term changes in the countryside. Change of staff in CCU Ian Simpson has left the CCU and is on a 1 year For information on CS2000 visit: www.cs2000.org.uk In brief secondment as CEH Communications Manager. 2 Science, society and education he consequences of environmental change will education. Other significant contributions were provided T become increasingly evident as we proceed by ECN sponsors the Environment Agency and NERC. through the 21st Century. It is important that we all Many participants, particularly teachers, commented on understand what is happening and why lifestyle how useful they found the event especially the informal adjustments are required to combat and adapt to these exhibition-style sessions. Certainly, if the level of noise changes. generated by chatting is a measure, the event was highly successful for networking! Details of the programme ECN wishes to make its information resources available including abstracts and slides are accessible via the for educational purposes at all levels from school event's web site at: www.nmw.ac.uk/tec2000/. children to postgraduate students and adult learners. To make these resources Key messages from TEC2000 attractive and relevant it is · Development of teaching tools of direct relevance to curricula is needed essential that materials · We must bridge the gap between what teachers need and what scientists produced are developed can supply collaboratively with the · Technology-based learning aids need to be complemented by conventional teachers and learners who approaches will use them. Aware that this is an area of interest for · We need to develop teaching resources that explore solutions as well as many environmental problems. research and monitoring institutions, ECN sought funding for a meeting to bring ECN’s web site (www.ecn.ac.uk) already provides easy the players together and develop ways forward. access to information resources that allow teachers and Happily, support was forthcoming from the Natural students to explore environmental change issues for Environment Research Council (NERC) and The Royal themselves. These resources include real data in Society. summary and raw formats, photographic records of change, and hourly updated weather data from an Teaching Environmental Change 2000 (TEC2000) was automatic weather station. ECN has also developed held at The Royal Society (London) on 27 October bespoke products for learning about environmental 2000. It brought together a balanced mixture of over change such as a set of tutorials designed to help 100 school teachers, university lecturers, education students learn about weather and climate change. officers, curriculum advisors, software developers and scientists with interests in Public Understanding of We hope TEC2000 will prove to be a launch-pad for Science (PUS). The focus of attention was on many new collaborative efforts between educators