BSc (Hons). CEnv MIAgrE MBIAC AIEMA
Peter Danks is an agri-environmentalist, with a practical background in agricultural engineering gained through working for two major international suppliers of irrigation and pollution control equipment. Since joining Reading Agricultural Consultants in 1986 he has mainly been concerned with the impact of agriculture on the environment principally through livestock related development, waste management, spray irrigation, water supply and soil water matters, latterly working on environmental research projects with RACEnvironment.

He is a Chartered Environmentalist, Director of Reading Agricultural Consultants and Director of RACEnvironment, Chair of the British Institute of Agricultural Consultants' Environment Division, Chair of the National Farm Waste Management Register, and a member of the Environment Agency's Thames Regional Environmental Policy Advisory Committee. For 17 years until 2007 he was an elected Trustee and member of the Board of Management of the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.

With colleagues, he has undertaken research for the Environment Agency and Water UK into the impact of outdoor pig production and pesticide use on groundwater. With RACEnvironment he has lead projects to identify the flow of materials and resources in the UK pig and poultry supply chains, and assessed the feasibility of a county-based farm waste collection scheme, funded by the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme. With RAC, working with the British Pig Executive he has prepared an Environment Strategy for the UK pig industry, and for the National Farmers Union has produced an analysis of the likely impact of a proposed Nitrates Action Plan on livestock farmers.

Peter's main interests are in the resource efficiency of livestock farming and the peaceful coexistence of livestock units and country dwellers at a time of rapid change in the dairy, pig and poultry sectors that is leading to larger livestock units that take advantage of economies of scale.