Jane Plant

Jane Anne Plant CBE, FREng, FRSE, FRSA was a leading geochemist, scientist, and author. She was Chief Scientist at the British Geological Survey and was a Professor of Geochemistry at Imperial College London. Plant was diagnosed with cancer several times and studied the link between diet and breast cancer. She published several books on the subject.^[1]

Plant was appointed a CBE in 1997 in recognition of her contribution to science and industry. She was a British Geological Survey scientist until her retirement from the role of Chief Scientist in 2005. Plant was Emeritus Professor of Geochemistry at Imperial College until her death on 4 March 2016.^[2]

Career

Plant spent most of her career at the British Geological Survey (BGS). She joined the Institute for Geological Sciences (former name of BGS) in 1967. She was the first woman to be appointed to a Scientific Officer role^[3] rather than in a technical or supporting grade.

She was assigned to the Atomic Energy Section in London, led by Stanley Bowie.^[4] She developed methods for a regional geochemical survey in the north of Scotland and was awarded a PhD in 1977 from the University of Leicester for her thesis "Regional Geochemical mapping in Great Britain with particular reference to sources of error".^[5]

Plant developed the high-resolution BGS Geochemical Baseline of the Environment (G-BASE) programme to map different chemicals over the land surface by analysing sediments, soils and water samples. Plant's methods have been adapted and adopted around the world as a standard for geochemical surveys.

Awards^[6]

• 2012: Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
• 2005: A life Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine
• 2005: Honorary doctorate of the University of Leicester
• 2005: An Honorary Doctor of Sciences degree from Keele University
• 2004: Honorary Doctorate of Åbo Akademi University, Finland
• 2003: An Honorary Doctor of Sciences Degree from Kingston University for services to Environment and Earth Sciences
• 2002: Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
• 2001: Honorary Doctorate of the University of Exeter, for services to Earth Sciences
• 2000: Fellowship of the Royal Society of Arts
• 1999: Freeman of the City of London
• 1999: Lord Lloyd of Kilgerran Award of the Foundation for Science and Technology for the application of science and technology for the benefit of society
• 1997: CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for Services to Earth Sciences
• 1997: Honorary Doctorate of the Open University (for academic and scholarly distinction)
• 1985: The Murchison Fund of the Geological Society

Books

• Beat Cancer: How to Regain Control of Your Health and Your Life by Mustafa Djamgoz and Jane A. Plant (2014)
• Pollutants, Human health, and the Environment edited by Jane Plant, Nick Voulvoulis, and K. Vala Ragnarsdottir (2012)
• Beating Stress, Anxiety, and Depression by Jane Plant and Janet Stephenson (2008)
• Eating for Better Health: The Plant Programme by Jane Plant and Gill Tidey (2005)
• Prostate Cancer – Understand, Prevent And Overcome by Jane Plant (2004)
• Understanding, Preventing And Overcoming Osteoporosis by Jane Plant and Gill Tidey (2003)
• The Plant Programme by Jane Plant and Gill Tidey (2001)
• Your Life In Your Hands – Understanding, Preventing And Overcoming Breast Cancer by Jane Plant (2000)

References