Latest news with #BBCDorset
BBC News
22-06-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Roman house rock damage in Dorchester 'not vandalism', says council
Damaged stones that lead down to a historic Roman building were not vandalised, an authority has rocks lie directly behind County Hall in Dorchester, Dorset, on a path leading down to the Roman Town large boulder at the start of the path is badly damaged on its top and sides, with large fragments of loose rock, while at least four other stones also show signs of damage as the path descends, with sizeable chips missing.A Dorset Council spokesperson said it is believed the damage is all down to the weather and natural forces. According to County Hall, it has been caused by spalling - a natural freeze-expand process where moisture freezing inside cracks in rock expands causing large forces which split shards of stone, or spall, off the outer surface. The town house was first discovered in the 1930s, when the then Dorset County Council bought Colliton Park to build a new County Hall. The site was excavated and the remains of at least eight buildings dating back to the Roman period were identified. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bird flu protection zone lifted in parts of Dorset
Captive birds and poultry can be kept outside again in parts of Dorset after the government lifted bird flu restrictions. A 3km (two-mile) "captive bird (monitoring) controlled zone" was imposed on 18 May after bird flu was found at premises near Pokesdown. The zone meant birds had to be kept housed and the sale of poultry eggs had to be monitored. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) said disease control measures in the area had been successfully completed. Bird flu is a disease caused by a virus that infects birds and sometimes other animals. The major strain - H5N1, which was the strain found in Pokesdown - has affected dairy cow herds in the United States. Since 2021, there has been handful of recorded cases in humans. In May, two peregrine falcons that were nesting at Christchurch Priory, about 3km from Pokesdown, died within days of each other. Avian flu was later confirmed in one of the birds while the other was still being tested. Anyone who finds a dead wild bird is asked to report it to DEFRA. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Bird flu protection zone in place for parts of Dorset Bird flu found in dead nesting peregrine falcon Avian flu spread sees 1.8 million farmed birds culled Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Bay 'still recovering' from bottom trawling
Part of the seabed off the Jurassic Coast is "still recovering" from the effects of bottom trawling 17 years after it was banned there, marine researchers have said. A consultation is being held on government proposals to extend the ban on the practice of dragging large nets along the seafloor. Some fishing organisations have criticised the plans and questioned the environmental impact of bottom trawling. Dr Emma Sheehan, associate professor of marine ecology at Plymouth University said, ending bottom trawling when Lyme Bay, off the Dorset and Devon coast, became a Marine Protected Area in 2008 has made a "positive change". The government proposal would expand the ban on bottom trawling from 18,000km2 to 48,000km2 (about 18,500 sq miles) of the UK's offshore areas that are already designated as protected. A UN Ocean Conference is taking place in France amid warnings from Sir David Attenborough that bottom trawling is destroying areas of the seabed and marine life. Researchers have studied the impact of ending bottom trawling in Lyme Bay since the introduction of the MPA. Dr Sheehan said large areas of the bay had already been "heavily degraded" by 2008. "[MPAs] tried to prevent the most destructive fishing methods so the seabed habitats that are so important for conservation and fisheries can be protected," she continued. Dr Sheehan said species including scallops, conga eel and black sea bream and appeared to have benefited from the ban. "We keep seeing positive change, year on year. "We still haven't go a plateau in the recovery. We're nowhere near there - it's still recovering, year on year." The government's plan would see similar protections extended to 41 of England's 181 MPAs. "It needs to happen - I'm in full support of this and it will have huge positive benefits for our marine environment," Dr Sheehan said. The UK's National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations has opposed the move to ban bottom trawling. Chief executive Mike Cohen previously said: "Trawling does not damage most of the seabed. "Trawls penetrate the sediment very little, if at all, in most areas and trawling has been carried out for well over 100 years," he said. A 12-week consultation will run until 1 September and will seek the views of the marine and fishing industry. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. UK proposes wider ban on destructive ocean bottom trawling Reef species increase in whole site management University of Plymouth
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Bay 'still recovering' from bottom trawling
Part of the seabed off the Jurassic Coast is "still recovering" from the effects of bottom trawling 17 years after it was banned there, marine researchers have said. A consultation is being held on government proposals to extend the ban on the practice of dragging large nets along the seafloor. Some fishing organisations have criticised the plans and questioned the environmental impact of bottom trawling. Dr Emma Sheehan, associate professor of marine ecology at Plymouth University said, ending bottom trawling when Lyme Bay, off the Dorset and Devon coast, became a Marine Protected Area in 2008 has made a "positive change". The government proposal would expand the ban on bottom trawling from 18,000km2 to 48,000km2 (about 18,500 sq miles) of the UK's offshore areas that are already designated as protected. A UN Ocean Conference is taking place in France amid warnings from Sir David Attenborough that bottom trawling is destroying areas of the seabed and marine life. Researchers have studied the impact of ending bottom trawling in Lyme Bay since the introduction of the MPA. Dr Sheehan said large areas of the bay had already been "heavily degraded" by 2008. "[MPAs] tried to prevent the most destructive fishing methods so the seabed habitats that are so important for conservation and fisheries can be protected," she continued. Dr Sheehan said species including scallops, conga eel and black sea bream and appeared to have benefited from the ban. "We keep seeing positive change, year on year. "We still haven't go a plateau in the recovery. We're nowhere near there - it's still recovering, year on year." The government's plan would see similar protections extended to 41 of England's 181 MPAs. "It needs to happen - I'm in full support of this and it will have huge positive benefits for our marine environment," Dr Sheehan said. The UK's National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations has opposed the move to ban bottom trawling. Chief executive Mike Cohen previously said: "Trawling does not damage most of the seabed. "Trawls penetrate the sediment very little, if at all, in most areas and trawling has been carried out for well over 100 years," he said. A 12-week consultation will run until 1 September and will seek the views of the marine and fishing industry. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. UK proposes wider ban on destructive ocean bottom trawling Reef species increase in whole site management University of Plymouth
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Bull killed and people injured in A31 crash
A bull has died and several people have been injured in a crash on a main route through Dorset. The crash, involving a lorry, a car and the bull, happened on the A31 near to the Sturminster Marshall junction, shortly after 01:00 BST. Dorset Police said a number of people were taken to hospital for treatment to injuries not described as serious. The road was closed in both directions between the Roundhouse Roundabout with the A350 and the Townsend Roundabout with the A35 near Bere Regis, until about 06:30. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Dorset Police
