Broadband provider Openreach has announced it is joining this year’s ‘Bugs Matter’ survey, having signed up to the UK wide citizen scientist study that sees participants measure the number of dead insects on vehicle number plates to help track trends in insect populations.
As the owner of the nation’s second-largest commercial van fleet with more than 29,000 vehicles covering more than four million miles every year, Openreach said its involvement should make a “huge difference” to the study. It is aiming to double last year’s input data by recording information from at least 4,000 Openreach journeys.
Moreover, Openreach said it hoped its commitment will inspire other businesses and organisations to get involved with the survey.
The national citizen science survey is organised by Buglife, Europe’s largest invertebrate conservation charity, and Kent Wildlife Trust.
The ‘Bugs Matter’ study has been conducted on an annual basis since 2021 and provides information against a baseline drawn from a reference survey carried out by the RSPB in 2004.
Analysis of data from nearly 26,500 UK journeys over the period shows a continuing decrease in insect numbers, with the results of the survey confirming the number of dead insects – referred to as insect splats in the survey – found on vehicles in 2023 were 78 per cent lower than those recorded in 2004.
By logging its 4,000 journeys, Openreach said it hopes to expand the dataset “significantly” and generate even more data on flying insect populations across the UK.
Openreach said the partnership – launched to mark National Insect Week – is just one of the many ways it is working to minimise its disturbance on natural habitats and move towards becoming a more nature positive business.
The broadband provider added it is working to become more sustainable overall by focusing on three key areas in its journey towards net zero emissions, including lowering its direct carbon emissions, reducing materials and waste, and protecting the natural environments it encounters.
“Using our fleet and our engineers on the ground to support this important piece of citizen science is simply the right thing to do, and an easy one for everybody to take action for nature; we can all get involved, it’s very simple to do and we are proud to support one of our partners in improving this critical data,” said Andrew Whale, chief engineer, Openreach.
Paul Hetherington, director of fundraising and communications at Buglife, said: “Insects are vital for sustaining healthy ecosystems and biodiversity, but many species are declining at an alarming rate due to habitat loss, pollution, and other threats. We’re thrilled that Openreach is using their vast operational reach to amplify the Bugs Matter message. Their mobilization for this cause throws down the gauntlet for other major fleets to get onboard as well.”
The partnership was also welcomed by Dr Lawrence Ball, lead ecological data analyst Kent Wildlife Trust, who said: “With Bugs Matter we are building a unique and incredibly valuable dataset, being the only large-scale and species-indiscriminate survey of flying invertebrate abundance. The commitment of Openreach and their drivers, will significantly increase the size of our dataset, making it more robust, and of even greater value for accurately estimating trends in insect abundance over time and space.”
You can now sign up to attend the fifth annual Net Zero Festival, which will be hosted by BusinessGreen on October 22-23 at the Business Design Centre in London.
