NatureMetrics: Transforming Environmental Impact Assessment through eDNA Metabarcoding Sampling and Analysis

“**挑战**人类依赖生物多样性生存，然而人类活动(捕鱼、填海造地、石油/天然气勘探)是海洋生物多样性下降的头号原因[NRDC，2019]。数据表明，生物多样性还显著影响为渔业提供食物和栖息地的海草和红树林生态系统的功能，从而影响莫桑比克伊尼扬巴内等沿海地区许多人的生计[Duffy，2006]。莫桑比克地区的海草面积在过去21年里减少了51%，影响了当地社区的生计[Bandeira，2014；Nordlund，2013]。目前的生物多样性测量和评估工具要么应用有限，要么昂贵，只有政府或有足够资金的公司才能获得。*当地社区可获得的轶事信息，基于缺乏推动监管变化的科学可信度。**意图/活动和产出**NatureMetrics正在寻求使EDNA监测在商业上可用于莫桑比克等发展中国家的生物多样性评估。该项目旨在确定在发展中国家部署英国/欧洲已经成功的流程/解决方案的可行性，以使当地社区、保护组织、政府和大型行业能够评估生物多样性对行业影响的反应。该项目将与当地实验室、社区和非政府组织合作推出EDNA生物多样性测量过程，以更好地管理干预措施和保护倡议。NatureMetrics的成本效益高、低工作量的EDNA解决方案识别和测量水系统中的生物多样性水平。它提供了颠覆性的创新，提供了：1.用户友好的采样工具包，允许世界上任何地方的任何人收集水生生物多样性数据。标准化和经验证的实验室工作流程，由NatureMetrics优化，可向区域合作伙伴实验室传授3。即使在参考数据库不完整**影响**的情况下也能确保准确性的分类分配的概率方法简单的抽样过程促进了就业机会的创造，该项目将促进与莫桑比克当地实验室和大学的培训和技能分享。提供的数据将确定和量化现有的不同物种，以便在需要时实施有效的恢复和保护政策，并促进更好地衡量公司承诺的生物多样性损失。这将对莫桑比克特别有用，因为莫桑比克的天然气项目将改变经济，[FT，2019年]，环境影响评估将是正在进行的发展的要求\[鲁伍马液化天然气，2019年\]。

"**Challenge**Humans rely on biodiversity for survival, yet human activity (fishing, land reclamation, oil/gas exploration) is the number one cause for oceanic biodiversity decline \[NRDC, 2019\]. Data suggests that biodiversity also significantly influences the functioning of seagrass and mangrove ecosystems which provide food and habitat for fisheries, thereby affecting the livelihoods of many people living in coastal areas such as in Inhambane, Mozambique \[Duffy, 2006\]. Seagrass areas have decreased by 51% in areas of Mozambique over 21 years, affecting local communities livelihoods \[Bandeira, 2014; Nordlund, 2013\].Current biodiversity measurement and assessment tools are either;* limited in application and expensive, accessible only by the government, or companies with sufficient finance.* Anecdotal information available from local communities, based on 'netting' (narrow scoped catch data) which lacks the scientific credibility to motivate regulatory change.**Intentions/Activities and Outputs**NatureMetrics is seeking to make eDNA monitoring commercially available for biodiversity assessments in developing countries such as Mozambique. The project aims to identify the feasibility of deploying what is already a successful process/solution in UK/Europe in developing countries to allow local communities, conservation organisations, government and big industry to evaluate biodiversity responses to industry impacts. The project will see the roll-out of the eDNA biodiversity measurement process in collaboration with local laboratories, communities and NGOs to better manage interventions and conservation initiatives.NatureMetrics' cost-effective, low effort eDNA solution identifies and measures biodiversity levels in water systems. It delivers disruptive innovation by providing:1. User-friendly sampling kits allowing aquatic biodiversity data to be collected by anyone, anywhere in the world2. Standardised and validated laboratory workflows , optimised by NatureMetrics, which can be taught to regional partner laboratories3. Probabilistic methods for assignment of taxonomy to ensure accuracy even when reference databases are incomplete**Impacts**The simple sampling process stimulates job creation, and the project will promote training and skill sharing with local laboratories and universities in Mozambique. The data provided will identify and quantify the different species present, allowing for effective restoration and conservation policies to be implemented where required, and promote better measurement of biodiversity loss for corporate commitments. This will be particularly useful to Mozambique where natural gas projects are set to transform the economy, \[FT, 2019\] and where Environmental Impact Assessments will be a requirement of ongoing developments \[Rovuma LNG, 2019\]."