The Link Blog is a space for members, and others, to express their views about the natural environment.
It includes our 
year plan and Agriculture Bill 
series, as well as our Blueprint for Water focused blogs.
If you would like to contribute a blog, please contact Emma Adler..
Published on: 18 March 2016
In recent years we have seen a shift in the use of social media platforms and online marketplaces which are being used to trade in endangered species, sometimes cutting out the middle man. This form of trading is often seen as low risk and difficult to detect and any new enforcement regulation from Defra needs to consider how we tackle cybercrime.
Read More...Published on: 11 March 2016
We are asking the Government to ensure that, in the drive to find more small sites for development and other land for housing, the views of the local community as expressed in local plans are given more weight, and that local heritage, wildlife and our special countryside has the right level of protection.
Read More...Published on: 10 March 2016
There are many things the Chancellor of the Exchequer could do to promote environmental sustainability that would be really good for the economy, and could even save the Treasury money! Environmentally sound economics makes simple common sense – now we just need the Chancellor to realise that.
Read More...Published on: 4 March 2016
There has been a lot of discussion lately on Invasive Non-native Species (INNS). Whereas their impacts on wildlife globally are a huge issue for biodiversity, some commentators see the introduction of non-native species as not entirely negative, or, indeed, a positive environmental benefit. The most recent broad scientific analysis of wildlife trends overall, however, identifies the impact of INNS as the second most important driver of global extinctions of plants, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals since 1500 - and the most common current threat associated with vertebrate extinctions.
Read More...Published on: 4 March 2016
The three-tiered approach of prevention, early detection and rapid removal, and long-term management and control is the guiding principle of the European Union Convention on Biological Diversity and it is widely used across the world to tackle invasive species.
Read More...Published on: 3 March 2016
Parrot’s feather originates from Central and South America and was first found in the wild in 1960. The plant is now threatening wetlands in the New Forest and is crowding out native species. Work is underway to remove this invasive non-native plant from the New Forest to benefit wetlands and the native species that rely on them. Now with ‘Invasive Species Week’ in the UK running until 6 March, homeowners are being asked to help by not disposing of parrot’s feather and other aquatic garden plants in the wild.
Read More...Published on: 2 March 2016
Dealing with invasive species at our places costs the National Trust thousands of pounds every year. As a conservation charity looking after 250,000 hectares of countryside and hundreds of ponds, lakes and rivers, we’re very aware of the impact of invasive species on native wildlife. We’ve joined the call, led by Wildlife and Countryside Link, for the UK government to do more to work with other EU countries to tighten up existing regulations to prevent invasive species reaching our shores.
Read More...Published on: 2 March 2016
Britain’s wildlife really is under constant threat from invasive non-native species reaching our shores. It costs our economy more than £2bn per year to hold them at bay. Wetlands are particularly vulnerable because invasive non-native species can outcompete our native wildlife and starve them of space, oxygen and food.
Read More...Published on: 29 February 2016
Sometimes it can be hard to see how 'environmental issues' affect our day to day lives. They can be tricky to relate to and understand, making it difficult for you to care about them. So, you may be amazed to find out that having the invasive non-native species Japanese Knotweed, a fairly well known culprit, in your garden can actually affect the value of your house and could impede the sale of your property.
Read More...Published on: 19 February 2016
On 18 February, new River Basin Management Plans were published to protect and improve water quality. These plans are part of a European framework for the environment, setting ambitious targets for cleaning up our water so it’s better for wildlife and clean and safe for people. Yet UK Government plans will result in only a 3% improvement in the next five years, leaving us languishing behind other EU countries in achieving goals for cleaning up our water.
Read More...
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