Published date: 24 January 2025

Closed opportunity - This means that the contract is currently closed. The buying department may be considering suppliers that have already applied, or no suitable offers were made.


Closing: 21 February 2025, 12pm

Contract summary

Industry

  • Research and development consultancy services - 73200000

Location of contract

SW1P 4DF

Value of contract

£0

Procurement reference

CF-0443800D8d000003VQwdEAG

Published date

24 January 2025

Closing date

21 February 2025

Closing time

12pm

Contract start date

14 March 2025

Contract end date

25 March 2026

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Open procedure (below threshold)

Any interested supplier may submit a tender in response to an opportunity notice.

This procedure can be used for procurements below the relevant contract value threshold.

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

Yes

Description

1. Overview of Requirement
1.1 Background
Invasive non-native species (INNS) are one of the top threats to global biodiversity, cost the British economy around £2 billion a year, and can harm human health and interfere with our way of life.
While terrestrial invasive non-native species are a serious issue, aquatic non-native species are particularly invasive and, once established, can be impossible to eradicate and extremely costly to manage. A 2016 report estimated the cost of INNS to the UK water industry as at least £7.5 million per annum, a figure expected to rise as increasing numbers of invasive species arrive in the country. This report provided a series of recommended measures for water companies to reduce the impacts of INNS, covering prevention, management, control and eradication.
Following this report, the water industry has implemented measures to limit future costs, maintain services, and help protect the environment from INNS. Between 2017 and 2025, over £1 million has been invested by a group of water companies to tackle aquatic INNS in England (£450k invested by eight water companies between 2017 and 2020, and £600k by nine water companies between 2020 and 2025). Delivery of this work programme is led by the GB Non-native Species Secretariat (NNSS), overseen by the Aquatic Biosecurity Partnership, a steering group of contributing water companies and key Check, Clean, Dry partners who are supporting the project through their time and the activities of their organisation.
To enable comparisons over time, and support future work in the next phase of the Aquatic Biosecurity Partnership, the partnership now requires:
1. Information on the current costs of INNS to the UK water industry.
2. Recommendations for measures to reduce the impact of INNS in the freshwater environment.

2. Scope of Requirements
2.1 The key objectives of the research are to:
1. Quantify the cost of INNS to UK water companies.
2. Identify and prioritise emerging INNS threats to UK water companies.
3. Assess progress made by water companies in England and Wales with recommendations made in the 2016 report.
4. Assess progress with collaborative working between water companies in this area.
5. Recommend the most effective measures for control of priority species.

More information

Attachments

About the buyer

Contact name

Defra

Address

Seacole Building, 2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF
GB

Telephone

+03459335577

Email

dgcenquiries@defra.gov.uk