Ecological Services Frameworks allow the Environment Agency, Natural England and other Defra Group organisations to use approved contractors to carry out technical and regulatory work. They allow coherence in approach, an alignment of aims and a supportive framework for collective progress towards Defra’s aims to improve and protect the environment.
APEM has played a key role across the Environment Agency’s Ecological Services Frameworks in delivering services including fish passage, river restoration, geomorphology and freshwater macroinvertebrate, algae and phytobenthos laboratory analysis services, including external audit of the Environment Agency’s laboratories.
Members of the APEM team, together with the Environment Agency, have delivered training programmes on new hydro-ecological tools, such as the Hydro-ecological Toolkit, which will support the regulation of water resource activities.
Dr David Bradley, APEM Group’s Water Environment Technical Director said:
For over a decade, successive generations of this framework have performed a critical role in supporting the Environment Agency in delivering its statutory duties for aquatic ecosystems. APEM has played a pivotal role throughout the life of this framework. EcoSF4 will have to deliver on ever increasing challenges that are facing the water environment, including pollution, increasing water supply demands and more severe drought and floods, under a changing climate. We’re looking forward to continuing to support the Environment Agency in stepping up to these challenges.
We look forward to continuing to provide support to Defra Group organisations including the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) and the Environment Agency to find opportunities to restore natural processes and manage, enhance and restore rivers and other habitats.
Read more about other innovative tools APEM Group have developed. To speak to Dr David Bradley, contact our Water team.