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Since 2008, the School of Environment & Life Sciences at the University of Salford has expanded its research in the field of population and conservation genetics, focusing on the application of molecular genetics and evolutionary theory on supporting the management of exploited living resources and conservation of endangered species and ecosystems. Molecular Ecology and Conservation demonstrates the following impact:
Increasing consumer awareness of the environmental implications of food choices, improving consumer confidence and food management policy, supporting environmental management and biodiversity, and guiding international conservation policy and management processes.
Between 1987 and 2011, the Fish group at Imperial College London assisted the Falkland Islands Government by providing fisheries management advice as well as delivering seasonal licencing and fee analyses which determined the number and type of fishing licences allocated to commercial vessels operating in Falkland waters. The work of the Fish group had unprecedented economic, commercial and environmental impacts on the Falkland Islands, where between 50% and 75% of the annual revenue required to fund all infrastructure, research and development in the Islands is generated by the £20M income from the sale of commercial fishing licences. In 2006, the Falkland Islands changed from a seasonal fishing licensing system to a rights-based management system of Individual Transferrable Quotas (ITQs) for fishing companies. The move to ITQs, which was recommended by the Fish Group, generated revenue of £9.5 million in 2010 and the system will remain in place until 2031. During a transition period between 2008 and 2011, the Fish Group supported the planned hand-over of licencing and fee responsibilities to the Falkland Island Fisheries Department which continues to use the bio-economic and stock assessment models developed by the Fish Group at Imperial for the sustainable management of marine resources.
Researchers at the Hull International Fisheries Institute (HIFI) in the School of Biological, Biomedical and Environmental Sciences, have shaped policies that govern the regulation, conservation and enhancement of freshwater fisheries for national and trans-national governments and their agencies and institutions.
The reach of this research is international as it underpins fisheries policies and guidelines across Europe. Its significance is considerable because these policies regulate the sustainable use of freshwater fisheries; it protects them from alien and genetically-modified fishes; and they prohibit genetically-modified fish in Europe. Our research also shapes European legislation on controlling fish-eating birds. As a result this research has produced significant and broad impact.
In the early 2000s, Taylor and Rico, C. at UEA developed a molecular fingerprinting assay to identify visually indistinguishable cod, haddock and whiting eggs for the accurate assessment of fish stocks. This is essential in setting fishing quotas for healthy populations. The impacts are:
Research at the University of Southampton into the behaviour of fish at dams has led to the improved design and positioning of screens to prevent economically important and endangered fish from being killed in turbines, as well as enabling them to pass barriers more successfully through improved fish passes. The research has informed practical changes to river infrastructure in the UK, Sweden, the USA, and China. It also led to development of methodologies for river restoration and planning which have aided the implementation of new conservation legislation, and quantification of the environmental impacts of beaver dams on fisheries.
Omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) are essential nutrients and have many beneficial effects on human health. Fish are the major source of omega-3 LC-PUFA in the human diet, and its level was maintained in farmed fish through the use of fish oil as a major component of extruded aquafeeds. Around 10 years ago it became clear that demand for fish oil would rapidly outstrip supply, limiting expansion of aquaculture activities, if fish oil use was not reduced. The challenge this presented was that alternatives to fish oil lack omega-3 LC-PUFA. However, replacement of fish oil with more sustainable alternatives is now standard practice in the industry. Research into fish oil replacement and omega-3 metabolism in the Nutrition Group, Institute of Aquaculture has been at the forefront of the scientific research in the UK and Europe that has ensured nutritional quality of farmed fish by developing alternative feed ingredients and feeding strategies that have maintained levels of omega-3 LC-PUFA despite radical changes to feed composition driven by sustainability and food security. This work culminated with recent demonstrations that farmed salmon can be net producers of marine protein (2010) and oil (2011).
Research led by Professor Charles Tyler at the University of Exeter has provided critical data on the widespread adverse oestrogenic effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals in wild fish populations in the UK. This has triggered the UK government to take action through investment in research and development of policies and guidelines. The research has led to world-wide recognition that endocrine disrupting chemicals are an emerging policy issue, a £40 million demonstration project with the UK government and water industry, and multi-million pound benefits to the UK in terms of improved water quality and safeguarding freshwater wildlife.
The effects of accidental salmon farm escapes, intentional releases of non-native salmon and trout, and stocking of fertile farm-reared trout, on the genetic makeup, fitness and long-term viability of wild populations has been a matter of increasing concern over the past two decades. Ferguson and Prodöhl's group demonstrated that offspring of farmed, first and second generation hybrid and backcrossed salmon and trout showed reduced survival compared with wild native fish, and that repeated escape/introduction events can cause a reduction in the biological fitness of vulnerable wild populations leading to reductions in numbers and potentially to their extinction. These findings led directly to changes in regulations and guidelines by relevant major stakeholders including the Environment Agency (England & Wales), Wild Trout Trust, North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation, World Wildlife Fund, and governments in Europe and North America.
Impact: Economic, animal health and welfare: Genetic markers have enabled selection of salmon lines with improved virus resistance
Significance: UK salmon industry benefit estimated at ~£26 million/annum GVA following identification of a genetic trait conferring resistance to an economically devastating viral disease.
Beneficiaries: Salmon farming industry, consumers
Attribution: Work performed by Houston, Bishop, Woolliams and Haley (Roslin Institute, now part of UoE).
Reach: Aquaculture industry internationally, i.e. Europe and South America (Chile).
The Cardiff Osteological Research Group (CORG) has researched the complex relationship between animals and people, across Britain, Europe and beyond. CORG has taken its research as the basis for a programme of activities that seeks to challenge modern attitudes to animals through archaeological studies, and to provoke reflection on the present relevance and future development of animals. Their impact has built on relationships developed with artists and practitioners in creative industries who have been influenced by the issues researched. By encouraging a range of audiences to consider the economic, social, ritual and symbolic roles of animals, CORG has enriched, informed and changed the perspectives of individuals who do not normally engage with the archaeological past, including target groups traditionally excluded from, or not aware of, academic research.