Company Statement
ECON aims to bridge the gap between consultancy and research by applying scientific rigour coupled with practical expertise to both development and conservation led projects large scale and small. ECON's position at the forefront of aquatic restoration results from pioneering research into the development of biomanipulation, most famously in the Norfolk Broads. Whilst continuing to build on this expertise, ECON has also been expanding in new directions and is becoming heavily involved in assessing the impact of wind farms on bird populations.
ECON's other specialisms include fish and fisheries, birds and small mammals alongside more general services including EIA, surveying and monitoring, species and habitat management plans and desk studies in a wide range of terrestrial, aqauatic and coastal habitats.
ECON carry a full range of insurance polices to protect staff, the public, clients and equipment.
These include:
- Professional indemnity - £1,000,000
- Public & products liability - £10,000,000
- Employer's liability - £10,000,000
ECON also have a comprehensive Health and Safety Policy and an Environmental Policy, copies of which are available on request.
Dr Martin Perrow - BSc, PhD, MIEEM, MIFM, CEnv
Founder and Director of ECON
Martin founded ECON in 1990, shortly after completing his PhD at the University of East
Anglia on the population dynamics of roach Rutilus rutilus. The company initially specialised in the biomanipulation and restoration of lakes. Much of this pioneering work was undertaken in the Norfolk Broads, although Martin has also worked on developing biomanipulation techniques in both Denmark and Holland.
Over the past few years Martin's passion to save the planet coupled with a lifelong interest in birds has fuelled ECON's intense involvement in the developing offshore wind industry (wind farms). Martin currently manages the ornithological requirements of several wind farm sites (Rounds 1 & 2), assessing the likely impacts, providing advice, and communitcating with both the developers and English Nature to engineer the co-existence of birds and wind farms with minimal impacts.
Martin is also very much an academic as well as a consultant and has published his findings extensively in the scientific literature,
although his most recent achievement has been editing the epic two volume Handbook of Ecological Restoration (publications).
Martin has also written for the wider public, often publishing articles in magazines such as British Wildlife and appearing on radio and TV (media appearances.)
Mark Tomlinson - BSc
Senior Fisheries Ecologist
Mark has been working for ECON since 1997. During this time Mark has progressed from assisting with fieldwork to leading all ECON's new fisheries projects. Highly skilled in fisheries sampling techniques, Mark has also a wide range of IT skills, particularly database construction and management, enabling Mark to contribute to ECON's wide range of projects.
Eleanor Skeate
Ecologist
Eleanor has been working for ECON since 2004, during which period she has worked on a range of projects. Her specialisms include identifying seals from aerial surveys and identification of marine invertebrates from trawl surveys. Eleanor also has a variety of computer based skills which she has used to update and improve ECON's IT capabilities, most notably by undertaking training to use GIS and establishing ECON with a GIS platform.
Kirsty Coutts - BEng, MSc
Ornithologist
Kirsty started working for ECON in 2005, shortly after completing an MSc in Applied Ecology and Conservation at the University of East Anglia. Kirsty is a keen ornithologist and is a member of the Wash Wader Ringing Group and holds a BTO ringing permit. During her MSc Kirsty gained a substantial amount of experience as a researcher, undertaking a challenging project on breeding Redshank and issues surrounding conflicting management on nature reserves. This work was funded by NERC, the RSPB, the BTO, Biotrack Ltd and the Sir Phillip Reckitt Educational Trust, and carried out on Islay, Scotland. At ECON, Kirsty is now involved in the work on the ornithological impacts of wind farms, and is involved in projects as both a surveyor and as a researcher.
ECON also use additional surveyors when required for larger jobs, all of which are trained and experienced.
They include:
Paul Lines
Paul Lines is Director of his own company, Enviroserve, which specialises in providing services to marine scientists. He has been employed by ECON on various wind farm related projects, acting as both skipper and liaison officer between boat crew and surveyors.
Pat Howard, BSc
Pat is a freelance bird surveyer specialising in seabird and cetacean surveys and has carried out numerous surveys for the RSPB, having trained at ECON and JNCC (for cetaceans).
Pat has also worked on birds in a number of countries and has lead expeditions to ring birds to Cyprus, Morocco and Gibraltar.
Dan Brown, BSc
Dan Brown is a freelance surveyor and ornithologist. He has carried out out a large number of bird surveys in relation to both off and on shore wind farm developments all round the country, include boat-based surveys (for which he was initially trained as a seabird surveyor by a JNCC approved trainer) towards the Ornithological assessment of the Lincs wind farm.
Dave Showler, MSc
Dave Showler is a highly experienced seabird surveyor (initially trained with JNCC), and has carried out boat-based surveys for the COWRIE scoter-benthos projects in collaboration with the University of East Anglia and the University of Bangor. He has also carried out many of the surveys for the proposed farms in the Greater Wash area.
Keith Benham, BSc
Keith has undertaken a variety of work for ECON in both fresh and marine waters, as well as data input and analysis.
A graduate from UEA in 2002, he undertook a project on Little tern foraging ecology as part of his studies.
Return to top of page
|
