Research Recommendations of the NPBR

Five working groups of scientists and senior policy representatives drawn from the NPBR were formed to examine the Biodiversity Knowledge Programme for Ireland (EPA, 2006) with a view to revising this document, prioritising research needs to help inform policy and to further establish knowledge gaps that hinder Ireland in meeting national biodiversity objectives. These reviews identified priority areas essential to implement our legislative requirements and to meet the challenge of halting the loss of our national biodiversity. The recommendations of the working groups in relation to each thematic area examined are available to download below.

NPBR Research Recommendations
Marine research recommendations
Agriculture, grasslands and soil research recommendations
Freshwater research recommendations
Uplands, peatlands and wetlands research recommendations
Invasive Alien Species research recommendations
Overarching research recommendations (All sectors)

Research  Recommendations: Summary documents
Marine summary recommendations
Agriculture, grasslands and soil summary recommendations
Freshwater summary recommendations
Uplands, peatlands and wetlands summary recommendations
Invasive Alien Species summary recommendations
Enabling actions summary recommendations

EPBRS meeting under the Irish Presidency of the EU 15-17th May 2013.

The EPBRS meeting under Irish presidency of the EU took place in Dublin Castle from the 15-17th May 2013. THe title of the meeting was:
Attaining targets of the EU Biodiversity Strategy:
-Towards a scientifically sound EU wide evaluation of the status of all species and habitats covered by EU nature legislation
-Planning research to support the implementation of the EU biodiversity strategy – priorities for Horizon 2020

EPBRS meeting under the Danish Presidency of the EU 16-18th January 2012

The EPBRS meeting under Danish presidency took place in Copenhagen from the 16-18th January 2012. The results from this meeting will feed into the intersessional discussions on the proposed work programme for the Intergovernmental Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). The results from the Danish meeting will be available here by the end of February 2012..

EPBRS meeting under the Hungarian Presidency of the EU 26-30th April 2011

The EPBRS meeting, held in Budapest, titled  “Research priorities to sustain ecosystem services”  supported the implementation of the European Biodiversity Research Strategy 2010-2020 adopted by the EPBRS plenary in Palma de Mallorca in 2010.

The intention of the strategy is to generate and share the knowledge necessary to bring human societies into a sustainable and mutually beneficial relationship with the living world. Click here for the recommendations of the Hungarian EPBRS meeting.

Comhar (SDC) Report on creating Green Infrastructure for Ireland

Comhar was first set up in 1999, as Comhar the National Sustainable Development Partnership. It is now known as Comhar, . Comhar is the Irish word for partnership. Comhar SDC is the key organisation in Ireland providing for sectoral and stakeholder engagement on implementing sustainable development.

Comhar have launched a research report focusing on Green Infrastructure, entitled ‘Creating Green Infrastructure for Ireland’. The report sets out a broad definition of Green Infrastructure and explores and proposes an approach and a set of principles that should be followed in Green Infrastructure planning. Please click here to view the report.

The BioChange project

BioChange was a large scale, integrative and multi-disciplinary research framework designed to support national and local biodiversity policy in Ireland. The project was funded by the EPA from 2006 to 2010

Its main aim was to develop an integrative research activity that would, now and in the future, address important issues affecting Irish biodiversity, with outputs directly linked to policy support both regionally and nationally. BioChange would also produce high quality biological and sociological data. Four work packages addressed the main drivers of biodiversity loss – habitat loss and fragmentation, invasive nonnative species, pollution and over-exploitation – in a variety of habitats and at differing spatial scales. Two crosscutting projects provided accessible information on biodiversity, and made recommendations on improved biodiversity governance.
Click here for the final Biochange Synthesis report.

Mulkear Life Project: Restoration of the Lower Shannon Special Area of Conservation for Sea Lamprey, Atlantic Salmon and European Otter

This is one of the most exciting and important fish and nature conservation projects ever undertaken on a river catchment basis anywhere in Ireland and hopefully will be a conservation blueprint for future integrated catchment management. For further information on this project please go to the project website at: http://www.mulkearlife.com