| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 76.52 |
| Liaison | Maria Kirrane |
| Submission Date | July 28, 2022 |
University College Cork - National University of Ireland, Cork
OP-10: Biodiversity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Barrie
Curley Estates manager B&E |
Does the institution own or manage land that includes or is adjacent to legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity, or regions of conservation importance?:
A brief description of the legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity, and/or regions of conservation importance:
The UCC Environmental Research Institute is located on the banks of the River Lee, above the intertidal reach. This portion of the river, adjoining UCC Campus is a river designated for the conservation of salmonid species under S.I. 293: European Communities (Quality of Salmonid Waters) Regulations, 1988. The ERI lies 200m from the boundary of the Lee Valley Natural Heritage Area designated under Irish Law.
UCC owns three research laboratory facilities on the Shores of Lough Hyne, County Cork. Lough Hyne became Europe's first Marine Nature Reserve in 1981. It is now designated a Special Area of Conservation (Site Code: 000097, EU Habitats Directive) and a Natural Heritage Area under Irish Law. The UCC research labs lie within the boundary of the designated sites.
The UCC Beaufort Campus is located on the shores of Cork Harbour which is designated as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. The campus is also adjacent to Cork Harbour Special Protection Area (Site Code: 004030, EU Birds Directive).The UCC main campus is located on the banks of the intertidal reaches of the River Lee, upstream of Cork Harbour.
A section of Alluvial Woodland has been identified on the Lee Road (adjacent to the Environmental Research Institute) which is protected as a priority habitat (91E0) under Annex I of the EU Habitats Directive. (See attached UCC Biodiversity Action Plan) https://www.ucc.ie/en/media/support/greencampus/pdfs/gcwebsitepdfs/UCCBiodiversityActionPlan2018-2023.pdf
Has the institution conducted an assessment to identify endangered and vulnerable species (including migratory species) with habitats on land owned or managed by the institution?:
A list of endangered and vulnerable species with habitats on land owned or managed by the institution, by level of extinction risk:
Species of Conservation Interest.
Over 450 different species of wild/naturalised plant, animal & fungi have been recorded on UCC campus. This includes species with breeding, foraging and resting habitats on campus, and migratory species observed passing through/overhead. Species inventories gathered during biodiversity surveys for UCC Biodiversity Management Plan and BioBlitz records were cross referenced with the National Parks & Wildlife Service Inventory of Protected & Threatened Species in Ireland to identify species of conservation interest. Species with international protection/legal status, or threatened status or above are presented in the attached spreadsheet. These include mammals, birds, fish and bryophytes.
Has the institution conducted an assessment to identify areas of biodiversity importance on land owned or managed by the institution?:
A brief description of areas of biodiversity importance on land owned or managed by the institution:
In 2018 UCC published its Biodiversity Action Plan. The plan classifies and maps all habitat types that occur on UCC campus and discusses in detail their ecological importance and conservation status. In total 27 different habitats were identified in UCC's urban campus, setting out a plan of action for their monitoring and management. Habitats of particular biodiversity importance include riverine and intertidal habitats, riparian and alluvial woodland habitats, native hedgerows, and vegetated cliff faces and limestone outcrops.
Please see the below UCC Biodiversity Action Plan for further details:
https://www.ucc.ie/en/media/support/greencampus/pdfs/gcwebsitepdfs/UCCBiodiversityActionPlan2018-2023.pdf
The methodologies used to identify endangered and vulnerable species and/or areas of biodiversity importance and any ongoing assessment and monitoring mechanisms:
Expert ecological consultants for various taxa (Bats, Mammals, Bryophytes, Vascular Plants etc) were recruited to establish baseline ecological data sets for UCC Biodiversity Action Plan 2018-2023. This was combined with records of birds observed on campus by expert ornithologists of the School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences. Data from Intervarsity BioBlitz events were also consulted for plant, fungi, mammal, bird, invertebrate & fish records.
The publicly available data sets published by the National Biodiversity Data Centre were also consulted.
A brief description of the scope of the assessment(s):
Species inventories were cross referenced with the National Parks & Wildlife Service Inventory of Protected & Threatened Species in Ireland. Only species with international legal status (EU Birds Directive, EU Habitats Directive), or threatened status or above (IUCN Red Lists for Ireland) are presented here.
Citation: Nelson, B., Cummins, S., Fay, L., Jeffrey, R., Kelly, S., Kingston, N., Lockhart, N., Marnell, F., Tierney, D. and Wyse Jackson, M. (2019) Checklists of protected and threatened species in Ireland. Irish Wildlife Manuals, No. 116. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Ireland.
A brief description of the plans or programs in place to protect or positively affect identified species, habitats, and/or ecosystems:
Please refer to UCC Biodiversity Action Plan 2018-2023 for detailed discusion of plans in place to conserve & enhance biodiversity, habitats and ecosystem services.
Estimated percentage of areas of biodiversity importance that are also protected areas :
Website URL where information about the institution’s biodiversity initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.