Funded participation in International
conferences/workshops
JNCC is able to support the OTs and CDs with funding to attend
international conferences and workshops.
Helping Islands Adapt Conference. 11th - 16th April
2010.
Olivia Renshaw attended a workshop in
Auckland, New Zealand, funded by Defra through the JNCC. The
Government of New Zealand were the hosts, with support received
from a number of partner organisations. Approximately 82
participants from 24 countries and territories and 29 national,
regional and international organisations attended the workshop. The
purpose of the workshop was to identify and strengthen mechanisms
that enable effective and sustainable alien invasive species (IAS)
management for islands. The discussions focused on four main island
regions – the Caribbean, the Coral Triangle, the Indian Ocean and
the Pacific.
Download
Olivia's conference
report (PDF, 348 kb).
South Atlantic regional hub
JNCC is coordinating its work in the South Atlantic
through a regional hub, based in the Falkland Islands. For
more information contact the
(please put
OT in the subject line).
Other areas of support and advice
JNCC also provides support and advice to Overseas Territories in
a number of other areas at the request of the UKOT governments.
These areas include economic valuation, climate change,
invasives
species, accessing funding, and multilateral
environmental agreements.
Blue Turtle Award
JNCC runs an annual Blue Turtle Award. People are encouraged
to nominate Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies groups or
individuals who are 'making a difference'.
Stedson Stroud, the Ascension Island Government Conservation and
Sea Fisheries Officer was nominated for the 2010
Blue Turtle Award for 'passion for plant conservation including his
involvement in the rediscovery of three plant species previously
thought to be extinct'.
More information
2011 Geoconservation in the
Overseas Territories of the UK by M. Stanley
The European Commission's OCT Environmental
Profiles - these environmental profiles are set in a
socio-economic, developmental perspective so that the findings can
be used to assist in programming projects in the
framework of the 10th European Development Fund (EDF).
Amphibians and
Reptiles of the UK OTs, CDs and SBAs: Species inventory and
overview of conservation and research priorities by Paul Edgar
of Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust.
More information on climate change impacts in the South Atlantic Overseas Territories.
Environmental Education resources on Overseas
Territories and Crown Dependencies.
2009 Implications of climate change for Biodiversity
in the UK Overseas Territories by J.P. McWilliams.
2007 Environmental Economics in the Overseas
Territories.
2006 Non-native species in the Overseas
Territories a Review by Karen Varnham.
2005 Review of Ramsar sites in the UK Overseas
Territories and Crown Dependencies by Dr Mike Pienkowski.
1999 snapshot of Biodiversity
in the Ascension edited by Dr Vin Fleming and
Deborah Procter JNCC.
Training and Research Programme Steering Group
Ascension Island is a member of the Training and Research Programme Steering
Group which drives the direction of the OT Training and
Research Programme.
Research Priorities 2011
JNCC asks the OTs and CDs for information about their top 3
research priorities each year via members of the OT and CD Training and Research Programme
Steering Group. These priorities are used to inform a number of
funding decisions including the JNCC
Research Contributions.
Training
JNCC is able to support the OTs and CDs with funding to
attend environmental training courses.
Natasha Williams from the Conservation Department on Ascension
went on a Geographical information Systems training course from
8-19th November 2010.
Education Resources
A series of environmental education materials that were
prepared by Ali Liddle for the Ascension Island Conservation
Department under an OTEP funded project. Materials are targetted at
primary schools. All are available for download here>>>
JNCC has contributed to projects in Ascension Island
including:
Regional technical workshop hosted by Ascension
In June 2014 JNCC collaborated with the Ascension Island
Government to run a regional workshop. The workshop brought
together international and regional techinical experts to look at 4
work areas: Marine Protected Areas, Sustainable Fisheries, Seabird
Monitoring and Biodiversity/Environmental Action Planning. The
workshop report and presentations are available here>>
Green turtle population Project
In 2012 JNCC contributed funding to the Ascension Island
Government Conservation Department towards their project to revise
population estimates of green turtles using the Island as a
hatchery, through the application of radio-telemetry.
The project had two aims:
Primary Aim: To establish using radio-telemetry, the number of
clutches laid by individual green turtles (‘clutch frequency’)
nesting at Ascension Island (AI) (the second largest rookery in the
Atlantic) which is essential to enable accurate population size
estimates to be calculated from beach monitoring data.
Secondary Aim: To provide training in radio-telemetry techniques
to local conservation organisations and donate all necessary
equipment to these organisations to enable future research.
Download the project report
(PDF, 212 kb)
Following the conclusion of the project a research paper was
written, and subsequently accepted by the journal Biological
Conservation. If you have a subscription to the journal you can
download the article. Otherwise you can
for a copy.
Nicola Weber, Sam B. Weber, Brendan J. Godley, Jacqui Ellick,
Matthew Witt, Annette C. Broderick, Telemetry as a tool for
improving estimates of marine turtle abundance, Biological
Conservation Volume 167, November 2013, Pages 90–96
Endemic Plant restoration Project
In 2011, JNCC has contributed funding to the Ascension Island
Government Conservation Department towards the Endemic Plant
restoration Project .
Invasive species project
In 2010, for the International Year of Biodiversity, the UK
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), has
funded a series of invasive species projects across the UK Overseas
Territories. This has been coordinated by the Joint Nature
Conservation Committee. Project activities
on the Ascension were:
- The construction of a track to improve access to the south east
coast of the island, to facilitate ongoing work on invasive alien
species, and to minimise erosion and disturbance that is currently
facilitating the spread of invasive alien species on the
island.
- The construction of a feral donkey enclosure to control numbers
and reduce the risk associated with donkeys spreading the seeds of
invasive alien plant species.
- The construction of a safe storage area to house equipment and
tools used for the monitoring and control of invasive alien species
on the island.
- Continued monitoring and assessment of the presence and impact
of rodents on the island. Rodent bait will be purchased for the
targeted control of rats in identified hotspots.
- Continued monitoring and assessment of the presence and impact
of invasive alien plant species throughout the island, and the
targeted control of these invasive species. A range of urgently
needed equipment and supplies will be purchased (including
protective clothing, herbicide sprayers, brush-cutter blades,
chainsaw parts).
- Continued monitoring of high priority indigenous species that
are affected by climate change and invasive alien species to track
population status, and ascertain the efficacy of eradication and
control interventions.
- Re-establishment and monitoring of endemic plants in areas that
have been cleared of invasive alien plant species
Download the project report (PDF, 37
kb)
Case Study - St. Helena and Ascension Cross-Territory
Skill share
GIS training – January/February 2010 by Olivia Renshaw
(Ascension Island Government Assistant Conservation
Officer)
Len Coleman, the GIS specialist from St Helena visited Ascension
for three weeks. Funding for his trip came from the OTEP endemic
plant project (ASC 503). Len trained staff on the use of GIS and
AEIOU (Ascension Environmental Information Operations Utility).
Various AIG departments, Cable and Wireless, the School and the
Police have benefited from Len’s visit. This training will allow us
to make better use of the AEIOU. The purpose of the system is to
assimilate available geographic information about the Island for
environmental monitoring, management and planning to meet a range
of obligations within Ascension Island’s Environment Charter.
Entering new datasets to keep the system up to date is essential
for its intended purpose of environmental monitoring, management
and planning. The plant census data from 2009 will be entered
into the system, allowing us to map the current distribution of all
the Islands endemic plants. This takes place on an annual basis and
allows the distribution and populations of our endemic plants to be
closely monitored. This data will assist with the updating of the
endemic plants IUCN Red List category.
For the detailed report by Len Coleman, please click here.