As part of the Countdown to COP26 Festival content series, edie has launched a new series of reports examining the key themes of COP26. First up, the Clean Energy Primer.
Freshwater
Freshwater
Freshwater habitats such as rivers and wetlands have high biodiversity, but this is being endangered by climate change, increasing the likelihood of floods and drought due to shifting rainfall patterns.
Professor Chris Spray, the lead author of the Freshwater chapter at the University of Dundee, said: Protecting these endangered habitats would necessitate a wholescape catchment solution that integrates ecological, cultural, and socioeconomic processes. Planting trees along riverbanks, for example, will preserve habitats by providing shelter and building thermal refuges, as well as slowing the flow of water to help mitigate flood risk.
Grasslands
(Photo : Wikimedia Commons)
Grazing grasslands by a diverse range of animals on the same landscape, such as sheep, cattle, horses, goats, and alpacas, will improve grassland sward diversity and greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions can also be reduced by switching from constant grazing to rotational or hybrid
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The report offers, for the first time, a complete assessment of the potential of nature-based solutions (NbS) to mitigate climate change and benefit biodiversity in the UK. Incorporating contributions from over 100 experts, the comprehensive evaluation of the available evidence details the strengths, limitations and trade-offs of NbS in different habitats across the UK.
Professor Jane Memmott, President of the British Ecological Society, said: The Nature-based Solutions report offers a real basis for setting effective policies and incentives that will maximise the benefits of nature-based solutions in the UK for the climate and biodiversity.
The report finds that NbS can provide a valuable contribution to climate change mitigation and can simultaneously protect and enhance biodiversity, improve human wellbeing, bring economic benefit, and provide a wide range of ecosystem services.
edie s COP26 Primer Reports are about seizing the green opportunity. Produced in the run-up to the official talks, this mini-series of reports are based on the five key themes of COP26: Clean Energy, Clean Transport, Climate Resilience, Nature-Bas.