Natural Resources research

Research in Natural Resources focuses on soil and water sciences in the context of land management for food, fibre and bio-energy crops, environmental services and biodiversity, using expertise in biophysical and social sciences and agricultural engineering. We received a strong result in the Agriculture Unit of Assessment with 85% gaining international status and 40% of that research being deemed of an internationally excellent standard*. The overall aim is the development of knowledge in relation to natural systems and an understanding of their management by human society. The main research areas are land processes, natural resources management and soil as detailed below. Please refer to our project pages for detailed information.

Land processes

Land processes research is centred around the application of biophysical science to integrated land management. Specific research areas include:

  • application of remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to land resources monitoring
  • modelling the physical, chemical and biological processes that drive landscape, river and coastal systems
  • modelling integrated land and water management in the context of economics and climate change
  • applied ecology in the context of ecosystem functions
  • conservation and biodiversity as a basis for ecological restoration.

Natural resources management

Natural resources management combines social sciences with applied mathematical and operational research in order to understand the nature of institutions, environmental economics and natural resource systems and their relationship to land management and agricultural production. Research interests include:

  • using anthropology and environmental sociology to understand human behaviour towards natural resources
  • understanding how institutions regulate relationships between people and their environment, including property rights and entitlements
  • the application of economic theory to the validation of natural capital in land and water resources so that capacity for ecosystem services is optimised
  • analysing policy, including legal frameworks, regulatory, economic and voluntary measures, and the management of technology, including knowledge exchange and innovation
  • urban, rural and agricultural development studies, including sustainable agriculture, rural livelihoods and agri-environmental systems.

Soil

Soil research aims to develop and apply knowledge about the physical, chemical and biological processes within soil and how these provide soil-based ecosystem services, in urban as well as rural settings. Current research includes:

  • fundamental studies on soil systems aimed at understanding processes operating at scales from micrometres to kilometres
  • inventories and monitoring systms for soil resources using advanced GIS technologies to support soil management, especially in Europe
  • soil management and conservation through the application of engineering to improve tillage, erosion and compaction control and water management. This includes sports surface technology and soil-related urban ecotechnology.

Research in natural resources is undertaken through the following groups working in collaboration with colleagues across the University:

 

* In relation to the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE).

School of Applied Sciences

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