UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership
This webpage is hosted by Cefas as the secretariat for the UKBCEP
NEWS
The UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership has now launched the Evidence Needs Statement:
Blue carbon habitats, such as saltmarsh, seagrass, marine sediments, and kelp forests are of huge global value, providing important benefits for people, climate, and nature. However, several knowledge gaps on how best to manage these important ecosystems remain.
This new report aims to help accelerate action to manage, protect, enhance and restore blue carbon habitats in the UK by identifying gaps in current research. The Evidence Needs Statement draws on the latest science, policy, and delivery expertise across the UK to identify several critical ‘evidence gaps’ in the management, creation, and protection of blue carbon habitats.
A Welsh Language version of the Evidence Needs Statement will be available here shortly.
Professor Graham Underwood appointed new Chair of the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership
The UKBCEP is pleased to announce that marine and freshwater biologist, Professor Graham Underwood, has been appointed as its new chair. Read more here. The Partnership secretariat and steering group would like to thank their outgoing, interim chair, Robert Bradburne for his work throughout the Partnership’s first year.
The UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership was announced on the COP26 Ocean Action Day (5th November 2021) with the following statement:
“The UK announced its intention to work together to help establish a new cross-Administration UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership to progress the evidence base on blue carbon habitats in UK waters, advancing our commitment to protecting and restoring blue carbon habitats as a nature-based solution. Through this partnership, UK Administrations will work together to address key research questions related to blue carbon policy, including working to fill the evidence gaps that currently hinder inclusion of saltmarsh and seagrass habitats into the UK Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory”.
Purpose
The purpose of the UKBCEP is to facilitate co-ordination and collaboration across UK administrations and progress the evidence base on blue carbon habitats in the UK by addressing key research questions related to blue carbon policy, thus advancing the UK’s commitment to protecting and restoring blue carbon habitats as a nature-based solution. The Partnership will work to ensure that the UK has a joint and robust shared scientific understanding of blue carbon.
High-Level Aims
The following high-level aims will shape the activities of the UKBCEP:
- Share information, data and knowledge on blue carbon evidence across UK administrations, including opportunities to work collaboratively.
- Enhance the evidence base surrounding the diverse blue carbon habitats found across the UK, including those beyond the 2013 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Wetlands Supplement.
- Enhance the understanding of human impacts on blue carbon habitats to inform policy decisions.
- Enhance the understanding of how blue carbon habitats contribute to climate adaptation benefits in the UK, and how this can be facilitated through management and restoration.
UKBCEP Partners
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland (DAERA)
Scottish Government
Welsh Government
Contact
UKBCEPsecretariat@cefas.co.uk
Further Reading
