If you are seeking to deliver an impactful dissertation topic, with direct relevance to environmental policy makers or, simply looking for inspiration for your final year project, you can search for ideas below.
You can search the research questions that have been directly submitted to us, or browse other collections of research ideas from partner organisation such as Natural Resources Wales and Climate Cymru. We are still adding relevant keywords to the data, so try a different search term if nothing comes up or get in touch for support searching the database.
If you do find a question of relevance and decide to address it through your dissertation, we would really like to know about it. Please fill out the form that can be found here.
[Enter keyword and press ‘search’ or the return key]
.
Asset management
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Flood and coastal erosion risk management assets can be any natural or man-made structure or feature, such as walls, buildings, earth embankments, shingle banks or raised areas of land. We need to understand how they can be best designed and operated.
Our research activities will support us to:
5.1 – make assets safe and reliable through design and operation accounting for a changing climate
5.2 – understand how assets perform in extreme situations (asset resilience), and be able to measure performance over time
5.3 – improve how we consider assets as part of an infrastructure system that has multiple benefits for society and the environment
5.4 – improve reliability in monitoring approaches to support the way flood and coastal risk assets are maintained
6. Digital technology
Further information is available on the joint programme webpage: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/flood-and-coastal-erosion-risk-management-research-and-development-programme/about
If you would like to contact the programme to share information on how your work relates, or if you want to hear from the programme team when a new research activity is starting, use the areas of research interest form: https://forms.office.com/e/PALmAmETZ2
If you want to request support from the programme for a research partnership follow instructions on how to apply for research support: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-research-support-and-partnerships
Keywords (discipline, other): flood, management, asset, asset management, coastal erosion, structure, engineering, design, operation, walls, buildings, earth embankments, shingle banks
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/flooding-reports-evidence-and-data/flood-and-coastal-erosion-risk-management-research/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: Yes External Partner: Yes Organisation: NRW
Contact Details
Name: Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
At what locations could saltmarsh habitat be managed to protect and enhance coastal flood defences and wider coastal protection?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Evidence needed to progress Aims 3 and 4.
Keywords (discipline, other): Coastal margins
Urban
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
At what locations could saltmarsh habitat be managed to provide coastal protection?,
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
For more, and updated information, please visit https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Keywords (discipline, other): Locations for managing saltmarsh habitat for coastal protection,”Saltmarsh management, Coastal protection, Habitat restoration, Flood defences”,
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: Yes External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Email Address: marinecoastalevidence@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
Biogeochemical cycles
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
‘How do soil pH and nutrient concentrations (N, P) change along a sand dune succession gradient, and what is their relationship with vegetation cover and organic matter content?’ at Kenfig
Keywords (discipline, other): sand dunes, pH, nutrients
Website/URL links:
Looking for collaborators: No External Partner: No Organisation:
Contact Details
Name: Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
Can exisiting National Vegetation Classification and other surveys be brought together to map the extent of semi-natural grassland in Wales?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Recent detailed terrestrial survey data are somewhat disperate and some of it needs quality control
Keywords (discipline, other): Semi-natural grassland
Mountains, moorland, and heath
Coastal margins
Enclosed farmland
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
Can marine habitat creation (e.g. managed realignment, seagrass restoration) deliver effective mitigation for loss of marine and estuarine fish?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Work is required to investigate the effectiveness of creating or restoring coastal or intertidal habitats to deliver mitigation (and/or compensation) for loss of marine/estuarine and freshwater diadromous fish in relation to marine renewable energy developments, e.g. tidal range projects.
Next steps and progress: Collaborative research work underway and awaiting the outcome of a PhD proposal
Keywords (discipline, other): Marine science, marine habitat creation, managed realignment, seagrass restoration, mitigation, loss of marine and estuarine fish, coastal or intertidal habitats, marine/estuarine and freshwater diadromous fish, marine renewable energy developments
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: Yes External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Dr Kirsten Ramsay Email Address: kirsten.ramsay@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
Can remote sensing be refined to accurately map all the different forms of semi-natural grassland?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Stocks of natural resources is a basic measure of sustainable management of natural resources. Remote sensing has thus far been mostly poor as recording grassland extent, but is continually being refined and becoming more accurate.
Keywords (discipline, other): Semi-natural grassland
Mountains, moorland, and heath
Coastal margins
Enclosed farmland
Ecosystem resilience
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
Can renewable energy projects have population level effects on mobile species?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Important evidence to balance priorities for provisioning ecosystem services through renewable energy resources with maintaining and enhancing biodiversity, specifically mobile species. To inform our advice to developers.
Keywords (discipline, other): Marine
Energy
Ecosystem resilience
Biodiversity
Climate change
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________
Can we develop a better understanding of eutrophication, specifically the relationship between nutrient inputs, algae growth and undesirable disturbance?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Our understanding of the impacts of nutrients on algae growth and undesirable disturbance is changing. Work by the Environment Agency and CEFAS is indicating nutrient ratios are important in determining community structure of phytoplankton which could have impacts on food webs. This project would look at the impact changing nutrient concentrations has on algae growth and community structure, with an aim of looking at impacts to food webs in Welsh waters. Next steps and progress: Likely to be contracted out after scoping.
Keywords (discipline, other): Eutrophication, Nutrient inputs, Algae growth, Undesirable disturbance, Phytoplankton, Food webs, Wales, Environmental impact, External funding
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: No External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Email Address: Phone:
________________________________________________________________________________
Can we meet the food requirement of a growing population without damaging the environment?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
To help inform future sustainable land management pratices
Keywords (discipline, other): Land use, population science, environmental damage, agriculture, sustainable land management
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: No External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Email Address: Phone: NA
________________________________________________________________________________