133 research outputs found
OPAL Community Environment Report
No full textThe Open Air Laboratories network, or OPAL, as it quickly became known, was launched in 2007 following a successful application to the Big Lottery Fund
It was the first time that Big Lottery funding on this scale had been awarded to academic institutions. The University of Central Lancashire led by Dr Mark Toogood was responsible for understanding public engagement with OPAL.
The Open Air Laboratories (OPAL)network is a nationwide partnership comprising of ten universities and five organisations with grants awarded totalling £14.4 million.
• Over half a million people have participated in the OPAL programme. OPAL activities are carried out by people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities, including 10,000 people in ‘hard to reach’ communities.
• OPAL opens people’s eyes to the natural world. Nearly half (44%) of OPAL survey participants said that this was the first time that they had carried out a nature survey. 90% of participants have learnt something new.
• OPAL has the ability to change people’s behaviour. Almost half (43%) of respondents said OPAL had changed the way they thought about the environment and more than a third (37%) said they will change their behaviour towards it.
• In addition to raising environmental awareness, OPAL also improves personal well-being by motivating people to spend time outdoors doing something positive, while connecting with people and nature
Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) : a community-driven research programme
No full textOPAL is an English national programme that takes scientists into the community to investigate environmental issues. Biological monitoring plays a pivotal role covering topics of: i) soil and earthworms; ii) air, lichens and tar spot on sycamore; iii) water and aquatic invertebrates; iv) biodiversity and hedgerows; v) climate, clouds and thermal comfort. Each survey has been developed by an inter-disciplinary team and tested by voluntary, statutory and community sectors. Data are submitted via the web and instantly mapped. Preliminary results are presented, together with a discussion on data quality and uncertainty. Communities also investigate local pollution issues, ranging from nitrogen deposition on heathlands to traffic emissions on roadside vegetation. Over 200,000 people have participated so far, including over 1000 schools and 1000 voluntary groups. Benefits include a substantial, growing database on biodiversity and habitat condition, much from previously unsampled sites particularly in urban areas, and a more engaged public
Recommended from our members
Open Air Laboratories (OPAL): a community-driven research programme
No full textOPAL is an English national programme that takes scientists into the community to investigate environmental issues. Biological monitoring plays a pivotal role covering topics of: i) soil and earthworms; ii) air, lichens and tar spot on sycamore; iii) water and aquatic invertebrates; iv) biodiversity and hedgerows; v) climate, clouds and thermal comfort. Each survey has been developed by an interdisciplinary team and tested by voluntary, statutory and community sectors. Data are submitted via the web and instantly mapped. Preliminary results are presented, together with a discussion on data quality and uncertainty. Communities also investigate local pollution issues, ranging from nitrogen deposition on heathlands to traffic emissions on roadside vegetation. Over 200,000 people have participated so far, including over 1000 schools and 1000 voluntary groups. Benefits include a substantial, growing database on biodiversity and habitat condition, much from previously unsampled sites particularly in urban areas, and a more engaged public
DANIDA; Environmental Information and Monitoring Programme (EIMP) Air Quality Monitoring Component. Mission 19 Report.
No full textThe nineteenth mission to Egypt on the DANIDA EIMP programme included further training monitoring programme auditing, QA/QC procedures and reporting. Monthly and Quarterly air quality data reports were produced and presented. Training in QA/QC operations and reporting was given to the Monitoring Laboratories. Results from evaluations at EEAA were reported in Newsletters. Discussions concerning the future air quality measurement programme for Cairo were reported
DANIDA; Environmental Information and Monitoring Programme (EIMP). Air Quality Monitoring Component. Mission 15 report.
No full textThe fifteenth mission to Egypt on the DANIDA EIMP programme included monitoring programme updating, QA/QC procedures, training and reporting. Air pollution episodes resulted in daily reporting procedures. Monthly and Quarterly air quality data reports were produced and presented. Training in QA/QC operations was given to the Monitoring Laboratories. Audits to the monitoring stations was performed as part of training given to the Reference Laboratory. Results were reported in Newsletters, Memos and in a paper presented at the international conference Environment '99
Design optimisation of air-fed full pressurised suits
No full textThis article is a post-print version of the published article which may be accessed at the link below.The JET machine and associated facilities require significant maintenance and enhancement installation activities in support of the experimental exploitation programme. A proportion of these activities are within radiological and respiratory hazardous environments. As such, breathing air-fed one-piece pressurised suits provide workers with protection from the inhalation of both airborne tritium and beryllium dust. The design of these suits has essentially developed empirically. There is a practical necessity to improve the design to optimise worker performance, protection and thermal comfort. This paper details the complexity of modeling the three-dimensional thermofluid domain between the inner surface of the suit and under garments that includes mass as well as heat transfer, suiting geometry, human metabolism and respiration and effects of limb movements. The methods used include computational fluid dynamics (CFD), theoretical adaptations of mixed-phase turbulent flow, profile scanning of a suit and actuating life size mannequin and data processing of the images and experimental validation trials. The achievements of the current programme and collaborations are presented in the paper and future endeavors are discussed.The author gratefully acknowledges the loan of the articulated mannequin from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratories. This work was funded jointly by EPSRC and by the European Communities under the contract of Association between EURATOM and UKAEA. The views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the European Commission. This work was carried out within the framework of EFDA
Sampling and analytical protocols for the Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) Water Projects
No full textOne of the main aims of the Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) project is to develop a greater understanding
of the state of the natural environment and its biodiversity especially in the most impoverished parts of
England. To this end, the project aims to increase national monitoring, providing new data on a range of
sites in locations across the country; provide more information on disadvantaged areas and polluted
environments and raise awareness of ecosystem health and how individual actions affect this.
As part of the OPAL National Water Centre’s activities our aim is to set up a monitoring
programme at a lake in each of the nine regions of England (Figure 1 and 2). This monitoring programme
involves quarterly measurements over 4-5 years (up to the summer 2012) supplemented by other less
frequent monitoring and a few ‘one-off’ sampling activities, mainly in the first year of the project. This
report describes the field and laboratory protocols for the sampling and analytical procedures undertaken
as part of the OPAL water projects
Outreach within the Bristol ChemLabS CETL (Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning)
No full textThis paper presents an overview of the Bristol ChemLabS project. In particular, it describes the development and impacts of the outreach project within Bristol ChemLabS, the UK’s Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) in practical chemistry, and its continuation beyond the funded project. The major elements of working with both primary and secondary aged students, both within their schools and within the undergraduate teaching laboratories, are described together with aspects of the science teacher training. The teaching elementsinclude school’s conferences, workshops within the School of Chemistry as part of the Open Laboratory Programme, summer schools and overseas work. Evidence is provided that demonstrates the impact of this programme on enhancing positive attitudes toward science and further education for the school students, as well as providing enhancing and embedding learning opportunities for school students and their teachers. The very positive impacts on the postgraduate chemistry students that work alongside the School Teacher Fellow (STF), asecondary school teacher working within the School of Chemistry, is discussed and the vital role played by these postgraduates and the STF to the overall success of the Outreach Programme. Generating a sustainable (financially and in terms of personnel) Outreach programme of the size of Bristol ChemLabS (beyond thelifetime of the CETL programme) is a unique aspect amongst UK CETLs and the mechanism used to achieve this is also discussed
DANIDA; Environmental Information and Monitoring Programme (EIMP). Air Quality Monitoring Component. Mission 12 report.
No full textThe twelfth mission to Egypt on the DANIDA EIMP programme included installations, training and reporting. The installation of monitors was finalised. A total of 37 air quality monitoring sites were operated in Egypt at the end of the mission. Monthly and Quarterly air quality data reports were produced and presented. The development of annual reports was undertaken as part of the training in understanding air pollution. Training in QA/QC operations was given to the Monitoring Laboratories. The first Audits to the monitoring stations was performed as part of training given to the Reference Laboratory. A seminar summarising the first year of measurements was given on 13 May 1999
Making vision into power : Britain's acquisition of the world's first radar-based integrated air defence system 1935 - 1941
No full textThis thesis represents the first application of a current conceptual model of defence acquisition to analyse the historical process, the 1935 - 1941 British acquisition of an integrated air defence system pivoted upon the innovative technology of radar. For successful acquisition of a military capability, the model posits that balanced attention must be focused acoss eight 'lines of developmen' - not only equipment, but also doctrine and concepts, logistics, structures, personnel, organisation, training and information with an overarching requirement for interoperability. This thesis contrasts what turned out to be a successful acquisition, of radar to achive air interception capability by day in the Battle of Britain, with less successful acquisition, or radar to achieve the same capability at night, where an effective system arrived too late to ward off the Blitz. The results establish the validity of the model and its attendant lines of development concepts, and furnish new insights into acquisition processes and military history. Acquisition lessons are derived for the capability-based involvement of industry, for the experience and personality necessary for key managers at different 'life stages' of an acquisition and for the avoidance of over-rapid 'dysfunctional diffusion' of innovative technologies. Historical insights for the Battle of Britain include the sub-optimal performance, for trivial reasons, of key South Coast radars, and the critical importance of the human elements of the radar-based air defence system. For the Blitz, airborne radar hardware has previously been identified as a key problem, whereas research here exposes the greater need for accurate ground control radar, the sound selection and training of pilots and operators in new tactics, and provision of equipment maintainers and test gear. New evidence illustrates that pursuit of an alternative to radar significantly delayed the optimal solution, and throws fresh light both on personalities and on development process management
- …
