Gove appoints two new experts to the Natural Capital Committee

Environment secretary, Michael Gove, has appointed soil expert, Professor Chris Collins and marine scientist Professor Melanie Austen as members of the Natural Capital Committee.

Head of Science for the Sea and Society group at Plymouth Marine Laboratory, Professor Austen, said she was: “Particularly looking forward to considering how implementation of the 25-year Environment Plan could improve our natural marine environment and the sustainable benefits that we gain from it.”

Chair of Environmental chemistry at the University of Reading, Professor Collins, said, "Soils have been a bit of a Cinderella topic compared to air and water, so to restate the commitment to manage soils sustainably by 2030 in the 25-Year Environment Plan was a major step forward.”

Both are appointed for the remainder of the committee’s current term, to December 2020.