Her Majesty The Queen has made Marine Management Organisation (MMO) non-executive board member Tony Delahunty Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year’s honour list 2018 for his services to the fishing industry.

OBEs are awarded for having played ‘a major local role in any activity, including people whose work has made them known nationally in their chosen area’.

Tony is a fisherman and businessman with over 40 years’ experience of working in the inshore fishing industry. He has represented and championed fisheries management issues locally, nationally and internationally throughout his career driven by a lifelong commitment to the sustainable management of our seas.

As well as being an MMO board member he has had roles in both the public and private sectors including his appointment as National Chair of the National Federation of Fisherman; Chair of the Sussex Inshore Fisheries Conservation Authority and Vice Chair of Sussex Sea Fisheries Committee.

Tony has also been a member of Selsey Lifeboat since 1978 serving as a crew member, senior helmsman and deputy coxswain and currently serves as deputy launch authority.

On receiving his OBE, Tony said:

“I have worked as an inshore fisherman for most of life and have had the opportunity to contribute to fisheries management issues, locally and nationally and I am honoured to receive this award. Whilst I am personally very pleased, I feel that it also recognises the importance and value of the work done by the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisation (NFFO), DEFRA and the Marine Management Organisation.”

The Environment Agency has announced plans to map England’s entire landscape by 2020, using the data to assess flood risk and inform conservation work.

Using aircraft equipped with laser scanners, the Environment Agency will map all 130,000km2 of the country, including rivers, fields and national parks – equivalent to 32 million football pitches.

As well as being used to understand flood risk, the data will also be made available for free to the public and industry to be used by archaeologists, environmental and urban planners, and even gamers to make accurate 3D models of the landscape.

Currently about 75 per cent of the country is mapped but with only sporadic coverage of upland areas. The new project, beginning over winter, will cover all of England’s national parks, areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs) and sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) such as the Peak District and the Yorkshire Dales.

Sir James Bevan, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, said:

This ambitious project will enhance our understanding of England’s unique natural features and landscape, helping us to better understand flood risk, plan effective defences and fight waste crime.

I’m pleased we are able to gather, use and share such valuable data to contribute to environmental improvements and conservation. It’s just one of the many ways the Environment Agency is using technology to help people and wildlife.

The Environment Agency has been using lidar – light detection and ranging – technology for 20 years to better understand flood risk. Maps are created by aircraft equipped with laser scanners, which measure the distance between the aeroplane and the ground. The data collected can then be used to plan flood defences across whole river catchments. It also helps environment officers spot sudden changes in the landscape that could indicate illegal waste dumping – in 2014 eight people in Cornwall were fined for dumping 4,500m3 of waste, which was discovered using lidar data.

Other organisations across the Defra group also use the data to help improve the environment – Natural England uses it to assess wildlife habitat and Forestry Commission use it to understand more about the country’s tree cover.

In 2015, the Environment Agency made 11 terabytes of lidar data – equivalent to 3 million MP3 songs – available for free to the public as open data. Since then, the data has been downloaded more than 500,000 times. The data has even helped archaeologists uncover lost Roman roads in the north of the country.

The new data will also be better quality than ever before, as the Environment Agency will map the whole country at 1m resolution by 2020. This means using the most up-to-date laser technology to reveal the features and details of the terrain more clearly.

For more information on how the Environment Agency collects and uses Lidar data, check out our blog.

You can also follow the Environment Agency’s Geomatics team on Facebook and Twitter.

Following the recent announcement about fishing opportunities agreed at this year’s December Council the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) can confirm that Council Regulation (EU) 2017/127 will remain in place until the new regulation is published in the Official Journal of the European Union in January.

As such, all current control measures, including the specific restrictions on fishing for Seabass, currently remain in force.

We will be publishing further guidance soon with information on what the council outcome will mean for both commercial fishermen and recreational anglers in 2018 and our plans for regulation of this.

Households across the country are being encouraged by the Minister for Local Government, Marcus Jones, to make it a record-breaking year for recycling over the Christmas period.

It’s estimated that the UK recycled a staggering 289,000 tonnes of card packaging last Christmas. However, with the weight of paper and card not collected equating to nearly 2,000 blue whales, there’s cause for everyone to double their recycling efforts this year.

From wrapping paper to Christmas cards, mince pie foil cases to Christmas trees, there’s a host of items that can be easily recycled or disposed of in a responsible, eco-friendly way.

Local authorities across the UK are offering helpful tips, guidance and even some dedicated treecycling services to help residents recycle as much as they can over the Christmas period:

• Trafford Council has produced the ‘naughty or nice’ list of items that can and can’t be recycled.

• Cambridgeshire County Council has issued 12 top recycling tips to help residents make it a great recycling Christmas!

• The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham offer residents a dedicated Christmas tree collection service on certain days and multiple drop-off points located across the borough for residents who want to ‘treecycle.’ The council estimate that it will recycle over 75 tonnes of festive firs over the holiday season.

• Swansea Council has released a downloadable 2018 recycling calendar so that residents can start the year as they mean to go on – recycling as much as possible.

• Lancaster City Council has partnered with St. John’s Hospice to boost treecycling and raise money for charity; for a small donation, residents can pay to have their real Christmas trees collected from their doorsteps by hospice volunteers.

Minister for Local Government, Marcus Jones, said:

Local authorities across the country are offering great initiatives to help us recycle as much as we can over the Christmas period – including the Christmas tree!

I’m encouraging households to find out what schemes are running in their area so that they can maximise their recycling and treecycling this year!

Here are DCLG’s top 5 recycling tips for the festive season this year:

Recycle that cardboard!

A lot of Christmas gifts will come in recyclable cardboard packing – especially large electronic items such as laptops, televisions and computer game consoles. It’s estimated that we could make a cardboard motorway stretching from Leeds to Lapland and back – 111 times – with all the card packaging we use at Christmas. Don’t let it go to landfill!

Scrunch test your wrapping paper!

Did you know, paper or cards with glitter can’t be recycled? The scrunch test is a helpful way to test whether your Christmas wrapping paper is recyclable.

If you literally scrunch the paper in your hand and it stays in a ball, it can be put into the recycling. Remember to remove ribbons, bows and other adornments before sticking it in the recycling.

Don’t ‘firget’ to treecycle!

Millions of trees brighten up homes and offices across the UK each Christmas. These can be recycled for composting and wood chipping. The chippings can then be used locally in parks or woodland areas.

Some councils will collect Christmas trees with normal garden waste, some will have designated collections and others will have special drop-off points. Visit your local authority’s website for detailed guidance. Find out more about the Forestry Commission’s sustainable Christmas trees too.

Don’t bin the festive fairy lights!

Fairy lights and other electronic Christmas decorations may be classed as Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). These items must not be sent to landfill but disposed of at designated sites such as household waste recycling centres. If in doubt, check with your local authority for guidance on disposing of those old fairy lights.

You can go ‘Cold Turkey’!

Who doesn’t love leftovers? Christmas dinner stays fresh for at least a few days after the big event and for months or more if you put it in the freezer.

You can freeze cooked turkey and use it to make a new meal; if you’re sick of turkey and cranberry sandwiches, why not be creative and try making a turkey curry? Additional tips and advice can be found on the Food Standards Agency’s website.

Households across the country are being encouraged by the Minister for Local Government, Marcus Jones, to make it a record-breaking year for recycling over the Christmas period.

It’s estimated that the UK recycled a staggering 289,000 tonnes of card packaging last Christmas. However, with the weight of paper and card not collected equating to nearly 2,000 blue whales, there’s cause for everyone to double their recycling efforts this year.

From wrapping paper to Christmas cards, mince pie foil cases to Christmas trees, there’s a host of items that can be easily recycled or disposed of in a responsible, eco-friendly way.

Local authorities across the UK are offering helpful tips, guidance and even some dedicated treecycling services to help residents recycle as much as they can over the Christmas period:

• Trafford Council has produced the ‘naughty or nice’ list of items that can and can’t be recycled.

• Cambridgeshire County Council has issued 12 top recycling tips to help residents make it a great recycling Christmas!

• The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham offer residents a dedicated Christmas tree collection service on certain days and multiple drop-off points located across the borough for residents who want to ‘treecycle.’ The council estimate that it will recycle over 75 tonnes of festive firs over the holiday season.

• Swansea Council has released a downloadable 2018 recycling calendar so that residents can start the year as they mean to go on – recycling as much as possible.

• Lancaster City Council has partnered with St. John’s Hospice to boost treecycling and raise money for charity; for a small donation, residents can pay to have their real Christmas trees collected from their doorsteps by hospice volunteers.

Minister for Local Government, Marcus Jones, said:

Local authorities across the country are offering great initiatives to help us recycle as much as we can over the Christmas period – including the Christmas tree!

I’m encouraging households to find out what schemes are running in their area so that they can maximise their recycling and treecycling this year!

Here are DCLG’s top 5 recycling tips for the festive season this year:

Recycle that cardboard!

A lot of Christmas gifts will come in recyclable cardboard packing – especially large electronic items such as laptops, televisions and computer game consoles. It’s estimated that we could make a cardboard motorway stretching from Leeds to Lapland and back – 111 times – with all the card packaging we use at Christmas. Don’t let it go to landfill!

Scrunch test your wrapping paper!

Did you know, paper or cards with glitter can’t be recycled? The scrunch test is a helpful way to test whether your Christmas wrapping paper is recyclable.

If you literally scrunch the paper in your hand and it stays in a ball, it can be put into the recycling. Remember to remove ribbons, bows and other adornments before sticking it in the recycling.

Don’t ‘firget’ to treecycle!

Millions of trees brighten up homes and offices across the UK each Christmas. These can be recycled for composting and wood chipping. The chippings can then be used locally in parks or woodland areas.

Some councils will collect Christmas trees with normal garden waste, some will have designated collections and others will have special drop-off points. Visit your local authority’s website for detailed guidance. Find out more about the Forestry Commission’s sustainable Christmas trees too.

Don’t bin the festive fairy lights!

Fairy lights and other electronic Christmas decorations may be classed as Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). These items must not be sent to landfill but disposed of at designated sites such as household waste recycling centres. If in doubt, check with your local authority for guidance on disposing of those old fairy lights.

You can go ‘Cold Turkey’!

Who doesn’t love leftovers? Christmas dinner stays fresh for at least a few days after the big event and for months or more if you put it in the freezer.

You can freeze cooked turkey and use it to make a new meal; if you’re sick of turkey and cranberry sandwiches, why not be creative and try making a turkey curry? Additional tips and advice can be found on the Food Standards Agency’s website.