George Monbiot pretty much nailed it on Monday – the approach to flooding in this country is woeful and relies on treating symptoms not the underlying illness. There was a great rush of political comment about the floods in the north of England, not just in Cumbria, which seemed to focus on how much money…
Author: Mark
Born Bristol, UK
Educated: Cleeve House School Bristol, Bristol Grammar School and Downing College Cambridge
Ph.D. University of Aberdeen, Winter activity of pipistrelle bats.
NERC post-doctoral Research Fellow, Edward Grey Institute, Oxford University
Former Conservation Director of the RSPB, 1989-2011
Congratulations to Rob Sheldon – and WWT
Yesterday saw a surge of support for Rob Sheldon’s e-petition to ban toxic lead ammunition from use. It passed the 5000 signatures mark with well over a thousand new signatures in one day. Not, perhaps, as impressive as over a third of a million signatures to ban Donald Trump from entry into the UK arriving…
Westminster Hall debate on toxic ammunition
The transcript of yesterday afternoon’s Westminster Hall debate on lead ammunition is available here. I’m always impressed by how quickly these things appear. I attended the debate, even though you can watch it on TV – it’s like live sport, it’s much more fun to be there to see the tackles going in. As a…
Guest blog – Would you eat an alien? by Prof Christine Nicol
Comments Off on Guest blog – Would you eat an alien? by Prof Christine Nicol
Professor Christine Nicol obtained a degree in Zoology from the University of Oxford, and then completed a PhD on the welfare of laying hens. This led to her involvement with many committees and working groups that oversaw the European ban on battery cages in 2012. In 2012 she was awarded the UFAW Medal for outstanding…
Scientific consensus on lead
Scientists occasionally produce consensus statements on issues. These are designed to be statements on what the science is and what it might mean. Here’s one on lead ammunition: ‘We, the undersigned, with scientific expertise in lead and human and/or environmental health, draw attention to the overwhelming scientific evidence, summarised below, on the toxic effects of…