Earth Sciences

Environment Agency, National Centre for Environmental Data and Surveillance

Contact Information

Mission Statement

The Environment Agency's aim is to provide a better environment for England and Wales, both for the present and the future.

Short Historical Statement

Founded in April 1996 with the amalgamation of the National Rivers Authority, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution and elements of Waste Regulation Authorities. Comprises eight regions and Head Office plus national centres for specific research issues.

Major Programmes

Involved in developing national surveillance techniques for:

• monitoring the state of the environment, including marine surveillance
• management of national databases, including those involving coastal data
• production of reports, web pages and other media to form an opinion on the state of pollution of the environment.

Research Leaders

• David Palmer, Head of Centre
• Dr Alison Matthews, Oceanographer
• Dr Graeme Storey, Ecologist
• Neil Veitan, Land Use Scientist
• Rebecca Allen, Image Analysis Scientist

Special Facilities at the Centre

• Operate Compact Airborne Spectrographic Imager (CASI) and Laser Induced Direction and Range (LIDAR) Systems
• Image Processing Facilities

Research Vessels Associated with the Centre

The Environment Agency operates a fleet of research vessels via the National Marine Service, operated from Peterborough.