Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies (OTCD) News Bulletin 17

JNCC work programme HIGHLIGHTS from the last FOUR months

  • 26 April:JNCC & SAERI sign a letter of intent for greater scientific collaboration
  • November:Overseas Territories Student Conference

Forward look – next three months

  • MayOTBG meeting –26thMay
  • JuneOT&CD meeting - date to be confirmed

The next Joint Committee meeting will be held on Thursday 9 June 2016 – in Edinburgh. These are public meetings. If you would like to attend, please phone on 01733 562626 or email: JNCC

Editorial

Dear Colleagues

We are pleased to issue thelatest edition of our Quarterly Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies News Bulletin.

As always, thoughts, comments, and feedback welcome.

Best wishes, from the JNCC OT and CD team.

TECHNICAL WORKSHOPS – South Atlantic biosecurity

JNCC co-ordinated a regional South Atlantic Biosecurity workshop hosted by the Ascension Island Government from the 14th – 18th August 2015. Participants came from across the South Atlantic Islands and UK to discuss best practice and share experience and ideas. More information available online.

©JNCC

South Atlantic Environmental Research Institute

JNCC and SAERI signed a ‘letter of intent’to enable greater future scientific collaboration in Peterborough on 26 April. This letter of intentaims tofacilitatescientific collaboration between the two organisations in the South Atlantic region.

JNCC’s UK & OT’s Biodiversity Info & Advice Team Leader, Tony Weighell, with SAERI’s Director, Paul Brickle, signing the formal ‘letter of intent’ between JNCC and SAERI.

From the 1st September 2015, Tara Pelembe will be seconded to the South Atlantic Environmental Research Institute (SAERI) for 80% of her time.

National reporting/MEAs

ACAP –

  • Continue to provide advice and responses to Environmental Impact Assessments and Oil Spill Response Plans for the current oil exploration work being conducted in the Falkland Islands, in relation to all biota including ACAP species.
  • Working with Falkland Islands Government and local NGO Falklands Conservation to secure small grant to enable photographic analysis for the Southern Giant Petrel and Black-browed Albatross census in the Islands.
  • Continue to provide advice ahead of ACAP’s ninth Advisory Committee meeting.
  • Produced the final draft South Georgia and South Sandwich Island ACAP implementation plan for 2016-2020.

RAMSAR

  • Herm, Jethou and The Humps in Guernsey, Channel Islands, were designated as a RAMSAR site in January 2016.

additional Support to HMG

In addition to general advice and the support on MEA’s and National reporting, one of the roles of JNCC is to provide the secretariat for the Overseas Territories Biodiversity Group (OTBG).The next OTBG meeting will be held in May 2016.

OT Training and research steering group

The OT Training and Research Steering Group held and face to face meeting in July 2015 inGibraltar. A note from the OTTRSG is available>

JNCC attended and funded OT Government environment staff participation at the Gibraltar/UKOTCF Conference 2015 “Sustaining Partnerships”: The Proceedings of the conference are now available for here>.

Projects

JNCC is currently directly involved in leading, managing, partnering or financially contributing to the following projects:

Contributions to research projects

JNCC has contributed to the following research projects:

Protection of the critically endangered Gumwood (Commindendrum robustum) habitat at Peak Dale, St Helena

This research project aimed to develop an effective working method for the conservation of the critically endangered, endemic St Helena gumwoods at Peak Dale and their associated ecosystem. It was led by the St. Helena Nature Conservation Group. The Project Manger wasJason Courtis. The final report is available todownload>.

Overseas Territories biodiversity data access project

The projects aim is to consider the options and opportunities for improved access to OT ‘core’ biodiversity data by working with OTs and other international (including UK) organizations to identify and address barriers to access where they exist. More information is available online.

Developing a Falkland Islands and wider South Atlantic Information management system

JNCC received funding from the Foreign and Commonwealth office to develop a Falkland Islands and wider South Atlantic Information Management system. JNCC worked with the South Atlantic Environment Research Institute, the main implementers of the project. The project manager wasDr iLaria Marengo.The final report is availablehere>.

Additional resourcewas provided to the Ascension Island Government and the St. Helena Island Government to feed into this project.

Life

Keep up to speed with training and advice from the UK LIFE NationalContact Point. Sign up to their newsletter here> and learn more on the new website.

Overseas Territories Student CONFERENCE - UK

Start date: January 2015; end date November 2015.

A workshop for UKOT students based in the UK was held at UCLin November 2015. TheOT student conferenceprogramme and presentation abstracts are available here>

Attendees at the UKOT Student Conference©Nicholas Jeria (Government of British Virgin Islands)

Publications and reports

  • Ascension Biosecurity workshop(report online)
  • Information Management System / GIS Data Centre for the South Atlantic region (Final report online)
  • Protection of the critically endangered Gumwood habitat at Peak Dale, St Helena(report online)
  • South Georgia & Sandwich Islands: Island-wide census of black-browed and grey-headed Albatross (report online)
  • Turks and Caicos Green Economy (report online)
  • Second OT and GIS meeting (report online)
  • St. Helena marine mapping Darwin project
  • Turks and Caicos Islands GIS workshop report

All JNCC’s publications and reports on Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies can be found here>