Address by Professor John Davenport, Department of Zoology & Animal Ecology,
University College, Cork, Director ERI-ECOSITE
At the Conferring of Science Degrees Friday,
29 September, 2000 at 10.00 am
 
'Environmental science: how to avoid a hot, dirty and short future'

Firstly I would like to add my congratulations to the assembled graduates and their families on their combined achievements. Both as a teacher and as a parent I know the sustained effort and sacrifices that have been made to bring you all to this enjoyable day. Well done!

Like many seated in front of me and behind me, I am an environmental scientist. My own research interests are mainly in marine science, but in UCC there are biologists, biochemists, chemists, engineers, ecologists, geographers, geologists, medical researchers, mathematicians and physicists who are all environmental scientists, at least for some of their time.

The 'some of their time' is important - environmental science is a broad and holistic science, with inputs from meteorologists, glaciologists, atmospheric chemists, oceanographers and microbiologists. Environmental problems can affect humans and their livestock, to there are medical and veterinary environmental scientists too. Most of these scientists will have other interests that fall outside the scope of environmental science - but their collaboration produces understanding that they could not generate separately. Environmental science encompasses new disciplines such as biodiversity evaluation, environmental biotechnology, sustainable energy development, ecotoxicology and coastal zone management - all of which demand cooperation and collaboration amongst people with very varied skills and talents.

Environmental studies are wide in their scale, ranging from investigations of the environment within single fields or buildings, to grand attempts to understand worldwide processes. I'll talk briefly about a couple of examples.

Recently the media has devoted much attention to a group of tourists who paid a great deal of money to visit the North Pole. They expected an icy desert, populated by polar bears and seals, but instead found open sea, visually indistinguishable from the middle of the Atlantic! Evidence has been building up for many years to warn us that northern ice sheets have been getting thinner and thinner, almost certainly because of global warming caused by human activities and changes we've made to the world's vegetation through deforestation. Latest predictions suggest that the Arctic Ocean will be permanently ice-free by the year 2050 - within the lifetime of many people gathered here today.

What effects this will have are not yet clear. A few years ago we might have thought that global warming would have brought a Mediterranean climate to Ireland, perhaps stimulating an Irish wine industry and bringing us sun-worshipping tourists. We would also avoid the expense of toasting ourselves in Spain or the Canaries!

However, new understanding of the complexities of climate and ocean currents suggests that a frozen Arctic Ocean is necessary for the Gulf Stream to function. The warming influence of the Gulf Stream gives Ireland a temperate climate. Paradoxically, global warming might bring a cold, bleak future in Western Europe as the Gulf Stream slows and temperatures plummet. Trying to determine which of these two scenarios is more likely is an example of environmental science at its most global, difficult and intellectually exciting, demanding enormous investment of effort in equipment, personnel and education by many countries to allow us to begin to understand and predict our environmental future and to inform our governments and legislators.

At the other extreme are the sorts of environmental problem that I learnt about when I served on a committee of the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency. For example: hundreds of millions of pounds had been spent in Ayrshire to install modern sewage treatment systems so that beaches would be declared safe for bathing by EU standards. Though the beaches were greatly improved and local people very pleased, there were still days when E.coli levels rose to unacceptable levels. Water authorities were appalled to find that their expensive investment appeared ineffective. Painstaking, often routine, research was set in train to discover why - untreated runoff from Ayrshire cattle farms into streams and rivers appears to be the main cause. This was good environmental science, but localized and driven by regulations and financial considerations.

Both examples remind us of the ways in which environmental science is increasingly important to ethical, legal and educative aspects of the world's societies. At a global level it has been widely accepted that some environmental problems are so pressing that the whole world must respond. The discovery 15 years ago of the rapidly-growing ozone hole that formed each year at the South Pole provoked such a response. This was probably the first time that the world community realized that apparently benign human activities had the potential to pose a serious threat to us all - in that case to expose the world to much higher levels of damaging ultraviolet radiation. International regulations to minimize use of CFCs in aerosols, air conditioners and fridges were devised with commendable speed, though there are ominous signs that more action is needed if the damaged ozone layers are to be repaired. More locally, national or regional legislators rely on environmental scientists to advise on ways to manage and regulate the environment to avoid or minimize damage.

There are many threats to environments both global and local. We worry about loss of biodiversity and the sacrifice of sustainability to short-term financial gain. Safe use and disposal of the toxic materials that are essential to modern industry are problems that will always be with us. New challenges arise, such as how to exploit the beneficial potential of genetically-modified organisms with minimum environmental risk. The world over, environmental degradation is usually a problem of poverty and powerlessness versus greed and carelessness. It is the task of environmental scientists to deliver understanding that helps to combat these threats.

The main reason that I was asked by the President to speak to you today is because University College Cork has recently received a major boost to its established ability to contribute to this exciting science at a world-class level.

A few weeks ago, the Higher Education Authority of Ireland awarded UCC £13.3 million from its Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions. This money will be used to establish an integrated Environmental Research Institute, the ERI-ECOSITE. To gain this award, thousands of hours of peoples' time were spent in devising and writing research programme descriptions, costing equipment and personnel, designing a building and seeking out support from institutions around the world. Negotiations at the highest university level secured matching funding from private donors. It was a mammoth task, coordinated by the Office of the Vice President for Research, Professor Brian Harvey, and conducted at great speed during a few weeks in the early part of 2000, at a time when all of us were busy with our normal duties. Dozens of people were involved and I want to pay tribute to their efforts and professionalism. The ERI proposals were evaluated internationally and the award was gained in open competition with other Irish universities. The ERI-ECOSITE is a cooperative venture, not only within UCC, but with our outside partners in the universities of the Atlantic Alliance (Galway and Limerick), University College Dublin and the Institutes of Technology, including CIT.

Within the ERI, teams of researchers will conduct research encompassing basic science, environmental technology and environmental law. A state-of-the art ERI building is to be constructed, but this will take time. However, the Institute already exists. Principal investigators from nine research areas are currently recruiting about 50 researchers and setting about ordering equipment and materials to conduct dozens of research programmes over the next three years. We intend to be in full swing within the next few months. All of this is a great achievement by UCC. However, the world that we live in is such that we cannot draw breath to congratulate ourselves. We need to make sure that we continue to attract in funds and bright young people - like yourselves - to sustain the ERI and allow it to become a major player on the international stage for many years to come.