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The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has published new guidance to empower the built environment to deliver Biodiversity Net Gain.
According to the UKGBC, alongside the climate crisis, we face an “ecological crisis” in which biodiversity in the UK is under severe and urgent threat. With 50 per cent of the UK’s economy linked to nature and the UK one of the most biodiversity depleted countries in the world, the UKGBC says restoring our natural environments is critical to building our future green economy.
As of November 2023 the Biodiversity Net Gain Policy will come into effect and mandate that all new developments must deliver solutions that support nature’s recovery.
The new requirements set out in the Government’s Environment Act present huge opportunities for the built environment to restore nature and build more regenerative towns and cities. Yet many organisations need more specific and practical support to build their understanding of the complex concepts involved.
To make Biodiversity Net Gain as accessible as possible to organisations across the UK’s built environment, UKGBC has published a series of user-friendly factsheets and definitions that explain the key concepts. The factsheets also explain the broader concept of Environmental Net Gain which, though not enshrined in legislation, remains a powerful strategy for organisations in the built environment to maximise the wide social benefits of nature-positive strategies that can tackle the climate and ecological crises.
Hannah Giddings, Senior Advisor for Resilience and Nature commented: “As well as enriching the natural world on which we all depend, we know that nature-positive solutions can build more resilient environments, tackle the climate crisis, and improve people’s lives, health, and wellbeing. These assets are an important step towards UKGBC’s mission of ensuring that Biodiversity Net Gain can be adopted by as many organisations as possible, as quickly as possible.”
This is the first in a wider series of resources designed to help organisations meet – and where possible, go beyond – Biodiversity Net Gain, developed with support and advice from Defra and Natural England.
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