Survey of the terrestrial habitats and vegetation of Shetland, 1974 – a framework for long-term ecological monitoring
A survey of the natural environment was undertaken in Shetland in 1974, after concern was expressed that large-scale development from the new oil industry could threaten the natural features of the islands. A framework was constructed by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology on which to select sample...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2016-02-01
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| Series: | Earth System Science Data |
| Online Access: | http://www.earth-syst-sci-data.net/8/89/2016/essd-8-89-2016.pdf |
| Summary: | A survey of the natural environment was undertaken in Shetland in 1974, after
concern was expressed that large-scale development from the new oil industry
could threaten the natural features of the islands. A framework was
constructed by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology on which to select
samples for the survey. The vegetation and habitat data that were collected,
along with the sampling framework, have recently been made public via the
following <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.5285/06fc0b8c-cc4a-4ea8-b4be-f8bd7ee25342" target="_blank">doi:10.5285/06fc0b8c-cc4a-4ea8-b4be-f8bd7ee25342</a> (Terrestrial
habitat, vegetation and soil data from Shetland, 1974) and
<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.5285/f1b3179e-b446-473d-a5fb-4166668da146" target="_blank">doi:10.5285/f1b3179e-b446-473d-a5fb-4166668da146</a> (Land Classification of
Shetland 1974). In addition to providing valuable information about the state
of the natural environment of Shetland, the repeatable and statistically
robust methods developed in the survey were used to underpin the Countryside
Survey, Great Britain's national long-term integrated environmental
monitoring programme. The demonstration of the effectiveness of the
methodology indicates that a repeat of the Shetland survey would yield
statistics about ecological changes in the islands, such as those arising
from the impacts of the oil industry, a range of socio-economic impacts, and
perhaps climate change. Currently no such figures are available, although
there is much information on the sociological impacts, as well as changes in
agriculture. |
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| ISSN: | 1866-3508 1866-3516 |