Professional summary
Heath is an environmental biologist whose work has underpinned policy on chemical use, land use and greenhouse gas reduction targets. He has worked as a research scientist for UKCEH since 1990, initially evaluating concentrations of pollutants including pesticides, industrial chemicals and heavy metals on wildlife while also undertaking systematic literature reviews and drafting documents for hazard and risk assessment programmes for UK Government and the World Health Organization. He attended WHO Task Groups which provided international recommendations on the use of chemicals of concern.
Heath has a Science Programme Coordinator role, supporting management to achieve corporate and scientific targets including income generation and science outputs, underpinning robust decisions on resource management. He manages the Defra-funded Rural Metals Heavy Monitoring Scheme and was secretary to the Defra Review of Transboundary Air Pollution (RoTAP), which covered changes in the emissions and impacts of atmospheric pollutants including sulphur, nitrogen, ozone and heavy metals and their links to air policies.
He became project manager for the DESNZ- funded project which reports emissions and removals of greenhouse gases from Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) activities; one of six sectors of the UK's Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory. In 2023 Heath became co-leader of the Emission Sources, Sinks & Solutions Science Group, leading 25 scientists develop models for atmospheric emissions of air pollutants and greenhouse gases. This work contributes to national emission inventory reporting for domestic and international climate change and pollution targets and investigates land management and mitigation scenarios for the future.