The UK left the EU this past Friday, and so began the transition period that will last until 31 December, 2020. That date is non-negotiable, so the UK has only those 11 months to negotiate and then finalise everything. Part of that means the UK will remove itself from its current environmental obligations enforced by EU laws, which includes a lot of wildlife and habitat protection, as well as standards for pollution and hazardous chemicals. Although we won’t know the full impact of Brexit on the environment and climate change until it actually happens at the end of this year, it is clear that there will be consequences. Read on to learn more about how Brexit will affect the UK’s ecosystems and natural resources. Water Until the EU implemented their Bathing Water Directive in 1976, untreated sewage was pumped directly into oceans. The legislation set by the EU made a huge difference to the cleanliness of the UK’s coastline, and now, almost 600 beaches in the UK meet those clean water standards. Prior to the Bathing Water Directive, not even one beach met those cleanliness standards. Now, as the UK reaches the point where they are no longer held to those standards, it is unclear what internal legislation will be...