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Decreased crop yields caused by the evolution of herbicide-resistant weeds are a global threat to agriculture and food security. Evolution of weed resistance to the herbicide glyphosate is particularly prevalent in North and South America, where genetically modified glyphosate-resistant crops are widely grown. Research carried out at the University of Warwick between 2008 and 2013 and led by Dr Paul Neve, in collaboration with industry and academia, has resulted in the development of computer models to simulate the evolution of glyphosate resistance in weeds. This modelling research identified new, more sustainable farming strategies for the use of this technology, such as avoidance of sole reliance on glyphosate and more effective ways to manage the timing of herbicide application. These recommendations have been disseminated widely throughout North America by the attendance of Neve and project collaborators at grower conferences, workshops and road shows, and have also attracted associated press coverage. The research has fundamentally changed farmer and industry management of genetically modified herbicide-resistant crops by providing new plant growth guidelines that are being used to combat herbicide-resistant weeds; for example, providing the cotton growth guidelines used for 75% of this crop in the mid-southern USA.
Pesticides need to be used safely and effectively, but their use needs to be evidence-based. Work at the University of Liverpool (UoL) has led the field in undertaking research on weed management in the UK uplands and guiding the practices of government bodies and others for over 30 years.
Work on bracken in particular has provided (a) policy guidance backed by statutory regulation on aerial spraying, applied to large areas of the UK throughout the assessment period; (b) policy guidance on bracken control and restoration of vegetation used widely in the UK under instruction from statutory bodies; (c) advice to the Bracken Control Group, allowing Emergency Authorisation from the EU of asulam (the only effective herbicide, but otherwise now banned); and (d) knowledge exchange through `demonstration days'.
Since 1994 the university's Agriculture and Environment Research Unit has undertaken an extensive programme of research on the environmental impacts of agriculture. This has been instrumental in providing agricultural practitioners, policy makers and researchers from around the world with a range of tools that have helped to deliver agri-environmental policy objectives on farms. These tools have aided farmers in improving their environmental performance, provided evidence to support policy objectives, and helped improve the accuracy and comparability of environmental risk assessments.
This Unit's staff and associates have considerable expertise in land management, focussing on two issues faced in Africa; the management of communal rangelands and the management of native species for the benefit of local communities. Coventry University is a recognized centre of global knowledge on Prosopis, a series of economically and ecologically important tree species, but also widely-considered potentially serious weeds in many countries. Underpinning research carried out at Coventry was pivotal to the correct identification, evaluation and subsequent management and utilisation of the most common tropical species, Prosopis juliflora and Prosopis pallida. Other research, on the management of common rangelands, has provided an understanding of the way common land rights are expressed in communal areas and the social, political and ecological factors which govern them.
The Unit's research has led to economic impacts, including for The Mesquite Company (Texas) who generate USD 150,000 each year from the sale of Prosopis products. The research has also had impact on public policy and society in Kenya and South Africa. In Kenya, the Government changed its approach towards Prosopis from eradication towards management and lifted a blanket-ban on the use of plant-based charcoal as a result of the Unit's research. This enabled the Green Power Station (currently employing 2000 people) to be established. In South Africa, policy debate has been informed by research on the governance of common land. The research has also had impact on creativity, culture and society, informing public and political debate in South Africa, Kenya and India. Beneficiaries include businesses developing new products and producing energy; local communities in South Africa and Kenya, and the South African and Kenyan Governments.
Research conducted by the University of Reading between 2002 and 2007 influenced management options mandated under the UK Government's agri-environmental schemes. Several innovative large-scale manipulative field experiments were used to measure the diversity of different groups of invertebrates in response to various management regimes in uncultivated field margins of farmland. The outcomes of this research fed directly into agri-environment scheme options and provided supportive evidence for management advice and advocacy work by several environmental non-government organisations. Changes in the management of field margins brought about through government scheme agreements and advocacy efforts by conservation groups has led to enhanced farmland biodiversity and improved habitat for threatened wildlife valued by the general public and conservationists.
Environmental regulations threaten commercial operations in many smaller ports. This impact case study empowered Falmouth Harbour Commissioners (FHC) to ensure sustainable anchoring, bunkering and ballast water exchange operations in Falmouth Bay by redefining environmental management as a business process and transforming stakeholder management. KTP award (KTP007098) funded by ESRC, NERC and FHC developed a Port Sustainability Management System (PSMS) and stakeholder management framework to ensure systematic collation and analysis of fragmented data, which ensured sustainable operations and safeguarded commercial revenue streams, protecting the port. A CUC-ESF studentship award (ESF11200NCO5) is investigating processes which underpin implementation in Europe's largest port industry.
Newcastle's research has shaped national policy and practice on the management of flooding and agricultural pollution, and international policy and practice in the developing world on managing forested catchments and sustainable water resources management. We show evidence that our research has: