The future of marine biodiversity and marine ecosystem functioning in UK coastal and territorial waters (including UK Overseas Territories) – with an emphasis on marine macrophyte communities

Abstract Marine biodiversity and ecosystem functioning – including seaweed communities – in the territorial waters of the UK and its Overseas Territories are facing unprecedented pressures. Key stressors are changes in ecosystem functioning due to biodiversity loss caused by ocean warming (species replacement and migration, e.g. affecting kelp forests), sea level rise (e.g. loss of habitats including salt marshes), plastic pollution (e.g. entanglement and ingestion), alien species with increasing numbers of alien seaweeds (e.g. outcompeting native species and parasite transmission), overexploitation (e.g. loss of energy supply further up the food web), habitat destruction (e.g. loss of nursery areas for commercially important species) and ocean acidification (e.g. skeletal weakening of ecosystem engineers including coralline algal beds). These stressors are currently affecting biodiversity, and their impact can be projected for the future. All stressors may act alone or in synergy. Marine biodiversity provides crucial goods and services. Climate change and biodiversity loss pose new challenges for legislation. In particular, there are implications of climate change for the designation and management of Marine Protected Areas and natural carbon storage by marine systems to help control the global climate system. The UK currently has legal obligations to protect biodiversity under international and European law.

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Neoliberalism and the Environment: Are We Aware Of Appropriate Action to Save the Planet and Do We Think We Are Doing Enough?

10.20944/preprints202105.0081.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ellie-Anne Jones ◽

Rick Stafford

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Public Perception ◽

Government Intervention ◽

Environmental Issues ◽

Biodiversity Loss ◽

Lifestyle Changes ◽

Habitat Destruction ◽

Plastic Pollution ◽

Environmental Threats ◽

The Uk

We currently face several, interlinked environmental crises, including climate change, habitat destruction and biodiversity loss. However, many governments seem unwilling to take strong and immediate action to address these threats, preferring to promote neoliberal approaches to allow consumers and the general public to make environmentally friendly choices. This is despite neoliberal approaches being much less likely to be successful than government leadership, taxation, subsidies, and legislation in addressing environmental issues. In this study, we examine public perception of environmental threats and solutions to these threats, in a survey, mainly completed in the UK. Climate change is seen as the biggest issue, likely due to recent activist campaigns and subsequent media attention on the issue. Neoliberal attitudes, such as green consumer choices to environmental concerns, do still dominate in a series of possible presented solutions, and score more highly than lifestyle changes such as changing diet. However, when questioned specifically about plastic pollution, government intervention to ban all unnecessary plastic scored very strongly, indicating a shift from a consumer driven response. Furthermore, most participants think they are at best only partly ‘doing their bit’ to protect the environment. The results demonstrate that the public are aware that not enough is happening to protect the environment and provide evidence that there is willingness for stronger government intervention to address environmental issues, although there is potential resistance to major lifestyle changes.

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Neoliberalism and the Environment: Are We Aware of Appropriate Action to Save the Planet and Do We Think We Are Doing Enough?

Earth ◽

10.3390/earth2020019 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 331-339

Author(s):

Ellie-Anne Jones ◽

Rick Stafford

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Public Perception ◽

Government Intervention ◽

Environmental Issues ◽

Biodiversity Loss ◽

Lifestyle Changes ◽

Habitat Destruction ◽

Plastic Pollution ◽

Environmental Threats ◽

The Uk

We currently face several interlinked environmental crises, including climate change, habitat destruction and biodiversity loss. However, many governments seem unwilling to take strong and immediate action to address these threats, preferring to promote neoliberal approaches to allow consumers and the general public to make environmentally friendly choices. This is despite neoliberal approaches being much less likely to be successful than government leadership, taxation, subsidies, and legislation in addressing environmental issues. In this study, we examine public perception of environmental threats and solutions to these threats in a survey mainly completed in the UK. Climate change is seen as the biggest issue, likely due to recent activist campaigns and subsequent media attention on the issue. Neoliberal attitudes, such as green consumer choices to environmental concerns, do still dominate in a series of possible presented solutions, and they score more highly than lifestyle changes, such as changing diet. However, when questioned specifically about plastic pollution, government intervention to ban all unnecessary plastic scored very strongly, indicating a shift from a consumer-driven response. Furthermore, most participants think they are at best only partly “doing their bit” to protect the environment. The results demonstrate that the public is aware that not enough is happening to protect the environment and provide evidence that there is willingness for stronger government intervention to address environmental issues; however, there is potential resistance to major lifestyle changes.

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The Impact of Human Pressure and Climate Change on the Habitat Availability and Protection of Cypripedium (Orchidaceae) in Northeast China

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants10010084 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 84

Author(s):

Huanchu Liu ◽

Hans Jacquemyn ◽

Xingyuan He ◽

Wei Chen ◽

Yanqing Huang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Northeast China ◽

Habitat Destruction ◽

Changbai Mountains ◽

Suitable Habitat ◽

Human Pressure ◽

Terrestrial Orchids ◽

The Future ◽

Suitable Habitats ◽

The Impact

Human pressure on the environment and climate change are two important factors contributing to species decline and overall loss of biodiversity. Orchids may be particularly vulnerable to human-induced losses of habitat and the pervasive impact of global climate change. In this study, we simulated the extent of the suitable habitat of three species of the terrestrial orchid genus Cypripedium in northeast China and assessed the impact of human pressure and climate change on the future distribution of these species. Cypripedium represents a genus of long-lived terrestrial orchids that contains several species with great ornamental value. Severe habitat destruction and overcollection have led to major population declines in recent decades. Our results showed that at present the most suitable habitats of the three species can be found in Da Xing’an Ling, Xiao Xing’an Ling and in the Changbai Mountains. Human activity was predicted to have the largest impact on species distributions in the Changbai Mountains. In addition, climate change was predicted to lead to a shift in distribution towards higher elevations and to an increased fragmentation of suitable habitats of the three investigated Cypripedium species in the study area. These results will be valuable for decision makers to identify areas that are likely to maintain viable Cypripedium populations in the future and to develop conservation strategies to protect the remaining populations of these enigmatic orchid species.

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7. The future of the world’s reptiles

Reptiles: A Very Short Introduction ◽

10.1093/actrade/9780198806417.003.0007 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 117-124

Author(s):

T. S. Kemp

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Global Climate Change ◽

Protected Area ◽

Global Climate ◽

Habitat Destruction ◽

Considerable Reduction ◽

Commercial Exploitation ◽

Number Of Species ◽

The Future ◽

Important Approach

The world’s reptile fauna is facing the threat of a considerable reduction in the number of species. One estimate is that by 2050 over 500 species, around 5 per cent, will have been lost. By 2080, the figure will have grown to 20 per cent, which is approximately 2,000 species. ‘The future of the world’s reptiles’ explains that the threats to reptiles are: commercial exploitation for food, medicines, and ornament; habitat destruction; global climate change; and pollution. Any comprehensive effort to conserve needs to address all of these. By far the most important way to conserve reptiles is setting up and regulating various kinds of protected area. Another important approach is legislation to control trade in reptiles.

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Caring for the future: Climate change and intergenerational responsibility in China and the UK

Geoforum ◽

10.1016/j.geoforum.2019.05.019 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 105 ◽

pp. 158-167 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Kristina Diprose ◽

Chen Liu ◽

Gill Valentine ◽

Robert M. Vanderbeck ◽

Katie McQuaid

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Future Climate ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

The Future ◽

The Uk

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The Implications of Brexit for Future EU Environmental Law and Policy

elni Review ◽

10.46850/elni.2017.002 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 11-16

Author(s):

Céline Charveriat ◽

Andrew Farmer

Keyword(s):

Environmental Law ◽

Law And Policy ◽

The Future ◽

Overseas Country ◽

The Subject ◽

Overseas Territories ◽

The Uk ◽

The Impact ◽

The Eu ◽

Environmental Law And Policy

Brexit is an unprecedented event for the EU. No Member State has ever left the Union previously. At most, overseas territories with small populations have changed status, such as Greenland (Denmark) in 1985 and the Outermost Region Saint Barthélemy (France), which became an Overseas Country and Territory (OCT) in 2012. These cases may have limited lessons for the UK adapting its legislation post-Brexit, as they did not impact EU decision making and law and, therefore, are not precedents for the subject of this paper. There has been quite a lot of analysis on the possible consequences of Brexit for the future of UK environmental law. However, less attention has been given to the implications Brexit may have for the future of EU environmental law and policy. This paper presents some thoughts on this subject. It begins with a consideration of the impact of Brexit on the general political and economic atmosphere of EU environmental policy making. The paper then considers the issues of trade and the external border. Some specific policy areas are examined, including chemicals, climate policy and agriculture. The paper ends by considering the implications of a possible future dispute mechanism with the UK.

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Marine biodiversity–ecosystem functions under uncertain environmental futures

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rstb.2010.0022 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 365 (1549) ◽

pp. 2107-2116 ◽

Cited By ~ 61

Author(s):

Mark T. Bulling ◽

Natalie Hicks ◽

Leigh Murray ◽

David M. Paterson ◽

Dave Raffaelli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Carbon Dioxide ◽

Species Richness ◽

Ecosystem Functioning ◽

Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide ◽

Nutrient Release ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Marine Biodiversity ◽

Invertebrate Species ◽

Atmospheric Carbon

Anthropogenic activity is currently leading to dramatic transformations of ecosystems and losses of biodiversity. The recognition that these ecosystems provide services that are essential for human well-being has led to a major interest in the forms of the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship. However, there is a lack of studies examining the impact of climate change on these relationships and it remains unclear how multiple climatic drivers may affect levels of ecosystem functioning. Here, we examine the roles of two important climate change variables, temperature and concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, on the relationship between invertebrate species richness and nutrient release in a model benthic estuarine system. We found a positive relationship between invertebrate species richness and the levels of release of NH 4 -N into the water column, but no effect of species richness on the release of PO 4 -P. Higher temperatures and greater concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide had a negative impact on nutrient release. Importantly, we found significant interactions between the climate variables, indicating that reliably predicting the effects of future climate change will not be straightforward as multiple drivers are unlikely to have purely additive effects, resulting in increased levels of uncertainty.

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Integrating bioclimate with population models to improve forecasts of species extinctions under climate change

Biology Letters ◽

10.1098/rsbl.2009.0480 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 5 (6) ◽

pp. 723-725 ◽

Cited By ~ 104

Author(s):

Barry W. Brook ◽

H. Resit Akçakaya ◽

David A. Keith ◽

Georgina M. Mace ◽

Richard G. Pearson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Case Studies ◽

Population Change ◽

Global Climate ◽

Extinction Risk ◽

International Workshop ◽

Habitat Destruction ◽

Species Specific ◽

The Uk ◽

The University

Climate change is already affecting species worldwide, yet existing methods of risk assessment have not considered interactions between demography and climate and their simultaneous effect on habitat distribution and population viability. To address this issue, an international workshop was held at the University of Adelaide in Australia, 25–29 May 2009, bringing leading species distribution and population modellers together with plant ecologists. Building on two previous workshops in the UK and Spain, the participants aimed to develop methodological standards and case studies for integrating bioclimatic and metapopulation models, to provide more realistic forecasts of population change, habitat fragmentation and extinction risk under climate change. The discussions and case studies focused on several challenges, including spatial and temporal scale contingencies, choice of predictive climate, land use, soil type and topographic variables, procedures for ensemble forecasting of both global climate and bioclimate models and developing demographic structures that are realistic and species-specific and yet allow generalizations of traits that make species vulnerable to climate change. The goal is to provide general guidelines for assessing the Red-List status of large numbers of species potentially at risk, owing to the interactions of climate change with other threats such as habitat destruction, overexploitation and invasive species.

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Drastic effects of Climate Change on Mediterranean marine forests

10.7287/peerj.preprints.26804v1 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Jana Verdura ◽

Alba Vergés ◽

Jorge Santamaría ◽

Sònia de Caralt ◽

Enric Ballesteros ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Natural Populations ◽

Biodiversity Loss ◽

Habitat Destruction ◽

Rocky Shores ◽

Fellowship Program ◽

Summer Period ◽

Marine Habitat ◽

Radiation Conditions ◽

Rocky Bottoms

Macroalgal forests have gone missing from most temperate rocky shores during the last decades, triggering an important biodiversity loss. Cystoseira species are some of the main marine habitat-forming species on shallow water Mediterranean rocky bottoms and follow the same tendency, mainly related to habitat destruction and pollution. However, here we suggest that anormal positive thermal events may contribute to this widespread Cystoseira decline. Monitoring thorough natural populations showed a drastic decline on a natural and relict C. crinita population in terms of density and structure coinciding with anormal high temperatures experienced during a summer period. Additionally, we experimentally test in the laboratory the cause-effect of those temperatures and UV radiation conditions experienced in the field on C. crinita populations. Although, C. crinita is able to resist high temperature picks, usually reached in Mediterranean summers, exceptional and maintained periods as those experienced during extreme events (28ºC) lead to the death of all individuals, compromising the viability and conservation of these forest-forming populations. We show how climate change may seriously compromise algal populations and synergically act with historical drivers of macroalgal decline (pollution, habitat destruction and herbivorism). Financial support from EU2020 (R+I) under grant agreement No 689518 (MERCES), MINECO (CGL2016-76341-R) and from University of Girona under congress assistance fellowship program for PhD and master students.

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