Geovation, Ordnance SurveyOpen Innovation Network Hub, has launched a challenge with UK Hydrographic Office(UKHO), to find a sustainable solution for diffuse coastal pollution. There is a $5,000 prize for the winners.
Diffuse coastal polluting causes significant damage to the coastline environment. Great Britain is an island nation with nearly 20,000 miles of coastline, including the islands. This is a serious problem. Diffuse coastal pollution has a negative effect on human health as well as the food chain.
Our coastlines are more than at risk from extreme storms and coastal erosion. They also face the threat of sea level rise and sea-level rise from climate change. There are many sources of pollution that can affect water quality and pollute the environment around the coast.
Although diffuse pollution is often small in scale, it can have a significant impact on the environment when combined with other sources. The majority of diffuse coastal pollution is caused by rainfall and land management practices.
Diffuse coastal polluting can be caused by agricultural runoff. Pesticides and chemicals can get swept away from farm land into streams, rivers, and ponds. All of these chemicals can build up along the coast and in estuaries, which can affect wildlife and residents.
The challenge will address the important problem of diffuse coastal pollution along our coasts and seek sustainable solutions to improve water quality, profitability, sustainability, and efficiency from agriculture to the water sewage infrastructure. It will also look at ways to improve beach cleanliness and wildlife conservation as a result of pollution from humans or animals.
Geovation provides data and expertise to innovators and start-ups. The OS Data Hub is the most accurate and comprehensive view of GB’s landscape and terrain. To find and protect the 20,000 miles of coastline in GB, this data will be supplemented by data from the UK Hydrographic Office (Met Office) and the British Geological Survey.
The innovation hub has supported more than 130 PropTech and location-data start-ups that have raised more funding than 116m and created more than 1700 jobs. Geovation has supported many sustainable start-ups, including Refill, which helps people find places where they can eat, drink, and shop with less waste, and Paua, which aims to simplify electric vehicle charging to make it easier for more people to drive EVs.
Carly Morris, Head at Geovation, said: “The coastal challenge is a great way to inspire and drive collaboration using geospatial, maritime and meteorological data so that innovators, with the support from our Geovation community, can devise sustainable solutions in order to tackle critical environmental issues.
“The environmental impact of diffuse pollution is ever more apparent in the UK, and we hope that through the challenge we can get closer to finding sustainable solutions that can deliver change and make a positive impact on the future of our coasts.”
Mark Casey, Head Research, Design and Innovation, UKHO, said that they were proud to partner with Geovation in this challenge. Diffuse coastline pollution is a very challenging issue for marine ecosystems. Therefore, it is vital that we find long-term sustainable solutions. Collaboration and partnerships are one of the best ways for real change to be found and to come up with innovative solutions to problems in the marine environment. We are proud to support participants using our world-leading marine data set and expertise.