Details
1-day course
CPD Credit: 6.5 hours, C1/C2
Course Overview
Biodiversity is a key consideration, both legally and technically, with respect to many projects. The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to biodiversity and how, as a practicing engineer, to navigate it to manage project risks, provide more robust assessments and deliver a better outcome for both the environment and engineering projects.
Course Aim
This course is intended to be an introduction to the link between biodiversity and the delivery of engineering projects. It will also look at some emerging issues which could influence projects in the near future. The course will cover the following aspects:
- What is biodiversity?
- Overview of the legal and policy requirements with respect to biodiversity and delivering projects
- The importance of Project Description
- Emerging issue – Biodiversity Gain
- Case studies - Integrating biodiversity into engineering design
Course Objectives
After the course, the participants should have gained:
- An understanding of what is biodiversity
- An overview of the legal and policy requirements relevant to biodiversity – in particular with respect to Appropriate Assessment (AA) as it relates to the EU Habitats Directive
- Insight into key considerations when developing a Project Description which is then used for consent assessment purposes
- Awareness of the key emerging issue of biodiversity gain and how to plan/design for this as part of projects
- Insight into examples of integrating biodiversity into the design of engineering projects
Course Programme
Morning Session
- Introduction to Biodiversity
- Legal and Policy Overview
- Importance of Project Description
Afternoon Session
- Emerging Issues - Biodiversity Gain
- Case Studies
- Q&A
Who Should Attend?
This course will be of interest to any engineer involved in the design and delivery of projects through the development consent process in the Republic of Ireland.
Trainer Profile
Dr. Rob Rowlands BSc(Hons), PhD, MCIEEM, CEnv
Technical Director (Ecology)
Rob is the Technical Director for ecology at RPS in the Republic of Ireland. He completed his PhD at UCD in 2001; completing research on behalf of Bord na Móna with respect to the ecological regeneration of its industrial peatlands. Having completed his PhD, he has worked in private practice as a professional ecologist for the last 21 years; returning to Ireland in 2020. He has advised on numerous projects throughout the UK and Ireland; including large-scale residential, commercial and industrial development, energy projects (transmission and generation) and infrastructure development (road and rail). He provides ecological expert witness on projects when necessary.
Dr. Miles Newman BSc (Hons), MSc, PG Dip, PhD, CEnv, MCIEEM
Principal Ecologist
Miles is a principal ecologist at RPS, specialising in terrestrial biodiversity. He has completed a BSc (Hons) in Environmental Management, MSc in Biodiversity Conservation, Postgraduate Diploma in Statistics, and a PhD in Botany (large herbivore impacts on native woodland vegetation). After completing his research Miles has worked in England and Ireland as a lecturer (Environmental Assessment module, Statistics, and Spatial Data) and in consultancy. He has advised on a wide range of projects in the UK and Ireland including transport, water, residential, commercial, data centre, renewable energy (solar and wind), Government and agency (guidelines and national policy), and extraction/waste.
Engineers Ireland supports the Sustainable Development Goals. This event contributes to Engineers Ireland's Sustainability Framework.
Please contact the Team for further information on scheduled course dates and In-Company options. You can reach us by phone: 01 665 1305 or email cpdtraining@engineersireland.ie