Sustainable development

Preparation and Planning

Ensure that you have access to an interactive whiteboard or an overhead projector in order to display some of the accompanying resources to students.

Photocopies of Student Worksheets 1-3 are required although these are shared in small groups, so one copy for each student is not necessary.

You may like to arrange access to highlighter pens to aid students in their deconstruction of the article in Episode 3.

Where activities are not already sufficiently differentiated, opportunities for adaptation are suggested. Additional preparation for differentiation up or down may be required. If there are children of higher or lower ability within the group, refer to the notes specific to each Episode in advance.

About the MOD Topic

The Royal Navy Fishery Protection Squadron (RNFPS) is the largest front line squadron in the Royal Navy. The mission of the FPS is to patrol the fishery limits of England, Wales and Northern Ireland - an area that covers over 80,000 square miles of sea and stretches up to 200 miles from the coastline. The Squadron has the authority to board any British or foreign vessel within British Fishery Limits (BFLs) and any British registered vessel anywhere around the world.

Within BFLs lie some of the richest fishing grounds in the world, created by the comparatively shallow European continental shelf. Sixty per cent of all fish landed in the European Union is caught within these waters making them very attractive to many foreign fishermen. It is the task of the Squadron to ensure that only vessels from countries that have agreements with the European Union (EU) are fishing in these waters; at any one time there may be more than 500 vessels fishing within BFLs. The RNFPS works in conjunction with the Sea Fisheries Inspectorate from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Scottish waters are protected by a separate organisation called the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency. Together they administer the laws and international agreements governing sea fisheries.

RNFPS also monitor methods of fishing. Not all methods of fishing are mutually compatible. Fishing with trawls and towed dredges may lead to conflict if executed in areas where fixed fishing methods, for example lobster pots, are in use. Fishing for certain species of fish or within distinct sea areas, for example sensitive areas in the middle of the English Channel, may lead to a dispute and the possibility of friction.

Information concerning the amount of fish caught by each fishing vessel inspected by RNFPS ships is transmitted to fishery managers on a daily basis. It forms part of the overall picture on which the Government and EU monitors the uptake of fish stocks, negotiates fishing agreements with other nations and formulates conservation measures. By providing this data the Royal Navy plays a valuable role in the management of the nation's fish stocks.

Whilst the vast majority of fishermen are law-abiding and fish legitimately, there is no doubt that the presence of a Royal Navy ship acts as a deterrent and makes would-be offenders think twice. A skipper faces very substantial fines and is liable to forfeit his expensive gear and catch if convicted.

Further Opportunities for Learning

Think locally, act globally - in groups, students should write a list of ways in which they and their family can personally contribute towards sustainability. Using these headers as a prompt: a. Food and Drink b. Energy and Water c. Local well-being d. Travel and Traffic e. Purchasing and Waste.

Students survey how they and their fellow students travel to school. Once the data is collated, consideration can be given to how the school community might be encouraged to travel more sustainably. Students should consider their aims before commencing the survey, drafting their questions carefully. Once data has been collected, students should collate their findings, using the most appropriate statistical format, and interpret them in order to reach a meaningful conclusion.

Students may like to use the results of their surveying activity to create a leaflet for other students in the school, promoting a reduction of the number of cars used during the school run. Their leaflet should encourage their peers to get to school by walking, cycling or car-sharing. Surveying and leaflet work may be able to support the school's Travel Plan. Students to conduct online research into legislation and debate on the issue of sustainable development, including the United Nations Agenda 21 and the Earth Summits.

If your school is not already involved with the EcoSchools Initiative, you may like to ask students to visit www.eco-schools.org.uk / www.ecoschoolsscotland.org. This scheme allows schools to progress from bronze, silver to green flag awards. The suggested activities within this lesson could be used to dovetail lesson content with departmental / whole school green objectives.

Students should read the attached news article which outlines the MOD's Sustainable Development policy. Ask them to pull out five statistics from the report and suggest what it shows about the MOD's attitude towards sustainability. How do they think the statistic would measure up against their school's use of resources?

Student worksheet answers

Download the teachers notes PDF to access the answers for this lesson.