Water-based sport and recreation: the facts

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Research for the agencies Challenges for funded
research into sustainable development
Andrew Church, Geography Division School of
Environment and Technology
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• 7 year programme of Government funded research
  into
• leisure on rivers and the coast of
• England and Wales
• SET - Niall Burnside, Chris Joyce, Jon Lee, Waste
  and Energy Research Group staff
• Chelsea School - Neil Ravenscroft, Paul
  Gilchrist, Gill Rogers,
• Belinda Wheaton
• Plumpton - Becky Taylor
• VRU, Business Services, Estates

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• The funding agencies
• DEFRA
• Environment Agency
• Natural England
• Welsh Assembly Government
• British Waterways
• Sport England

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Challenges for government funded research into
sustainable development

• Sustainable institutional support for research
• Ethics and environmental research
• The power and influence of university research

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Access to the countryside
Countryside Rights of Way Act 2000 - The Right to
Roam Excludes water Political pressure to
extend especially from canoeists Opposition
from anglers and landowners
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Global problem of public access to natural
resources for leisure and tourism
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Four projects 2001-2008Project 1 - The policy
context

• Water-based sport and recreation the facts
• Demand, supply and access issues
• What is the problem?

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Project 2 Feasibility study

• Project 1 conclusions Eight policy scenarios in
  a strategic context
• e.g. legislation, purchase land, voluntary
  agreement
• A Study of the Feasibility of Voluntary Access
  Agreements for canoeing (Countryside Agency)

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Project 3 Implementation of Canoe Access
Agreements
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Project 4 Development of regional strategies
for water related sport and recreationOn going
work for the Environment Agency
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Sustainable institutional support for research?
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From this - DEFRA tender 2001

• The University, within its Mission Statement,
• recognises its role in the application of
• knowledge and expertise to the understanding
• of public policy.

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To this - Environment Agency Tender 2007

• Technical 3. Environmental Questionnaire A (SME/
  LR) Technical
• Company Name University of Brighton
• 1. Does your Company take into account
  environmental issues in its overall performance?
  
• 10. Please provide details of any Environmental
  Management System that your organisation holds
  (that covers the services in question). If you
  hold any certified systems, please include copies
  of your certificate/s.

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• 2. Do you consider environmental issues for all
  the products and services you supply?
• Always Regularly Often Rarely
• Never
• Comments
• _________________________________________________
  ______________
• _________________________________________________
  ______________
• 3. Does your Company audit the impact it may have
  on the environment?
• Always Regularly Often Rarely
• Never
• Comments

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Ethics and environmental research

• University Guidance on Good Practice in
• Research ethics and governance
• Research which would normally be considered
• to involve more than minimal risk would include
• research involving
• Likelihood of significant negative impact on the
  physical or social environment

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The power and influence of university research
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Challenges for government funded research into
sustainable development

• Sustainable institutional support
• Ethics and environmental research
• The power and influence of university research
  transparency and accountability

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After Allen 2003
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