Integrating New Data and Emerging Research for Better Informed Decision Making
Date: Monday 19 August 2024
Time: 10:00 to 12:00
Location: Teams (online)
Objective
To present updated insights on seabirds in the Celtic Sea, emphasizing the integration of recent data, primarily aimed at developers, consultants, national governing bodies, and conservation organisations.
Introduction
A key objective of this workshop is to provide updated evidence and insights on seabirds in the UK Celtic Sea area and to present future ongoing research programmes seeking to fill currently identified evidence gaps.
Since 2021, extensive offshore survey activities have been ongoing as interest in the potential Celtic Sea Renewable Energy resource and Nature Recovery opportunities have grown. Celtic Sea Power, Natural England, the Crown Estate, and other interested parties have been utilizing Digital Aerial Surveys, boat-based observations, and Airborne Lidar technologies to better understand seabird presence and behaviour.
The main aim of this work has been to support the development of a new evidence base to aid future decision making. We now hope to share some of these outcomes with a wider audience, while also highlighting other current ongoing research programmes in this area.
As we move into the second part of the session, with an open floor discussion, we hope there will be an opportunity to identify other potential known evidence sources and discuss potential outstanding evidence gaps and further research requirements. All feedback will contribute to the production of a new seabird density and distribution model for the UK Celtic Sea, to be released in the summer of 2025, as well as future activities required to ensure as much as possible is understood about seabirds in our region.
Agenda
10:00 to 10:15 Harrison Smith (CSP)
- Introduction to Seabirds in the Celtic Sea
- Importance as critical environmental receptors.
- Identification of current issues with key seabird species.
- Data-Driven Assessment
- Enhanced data collection methods.
- Insights from digital aerial surveys and LiDAR technology.
- Overview of New Findings
- Recent data on bird flight behaviour.
10:15 to 11:00 Neil Farrington (CSP); Alex Banks (Natural England); Orea Anderson (JNCC)
- Ongoing Programs
- Updates on key initiatives and future outcomes.
- POSEIDON’s role in baseline data modelling and data integration.
- Contributions of ReSCUE and ProcBe Programs and the Crown Estate data collections.
- Overview and impact of these programs in the Celtic Sea.
11:00 to 11:10 Break
11:10 to 12:00 Harrison Smith and Neil Farrington (CSP)
- Interactive Open-Floor Discussion
- Discussion on whether evidence on seabirds’ presence and behaviour in the UK Celtic Sea area will remain a ‘critical issue’ after current program completion.
- Q&A session to address data gaps, future directions, and early thinking/aspirations about potential process changes.