Biodiversity net gain: the challenges and opportunities

After multiple delays, the biodiversity net gain changes have come into effect, with the statutory obligation for 10% to be delivered on all developments.

The obvious challenge is space. How do we find a 10% gain on a site with limited space available? Certain types of sites, such as petrol stations, will be limited in what can be done due to contamination risks. There will be the option to create and enhance habitat elsewhere. However, the further this is away from the original site, the lower its score will be.

Planning requirements

With the changes, design and management plans need to become more ecology heavy when it comes to planning. These plans – whether referring to habitats on or off-site – will be critical to demonstrating retention into the future.

Another challenge is public perception. From an aesthetic perspective, people are now very used to seeing curated, manicured landscapes. However, we are seeing a step change in contemporary landscape projects towards creating visually and seasonally pleasing design.

For parks and rain gardens, this means increasing native species usage mixed with conventional planting to create plant communities, which support insects and pollination. If spaces are left to grow for longer to aid biodiversity and other places left to ‘re-wild’, many of the public may not understand this is intentional.

This transition marks a shift from viewing biodiversity measures as nice to have to need to have components that allow for the meticulous planning, designing, and management of spaces to align with aesthetic values and ecological imperatives.

Huge opportunity

Herein lies a huge opportunity to educate the wider public on biodiversity matters. For example, there are plenty of small spaces that can be maximised to create microclimates that have a huge impact. The benefits – and how people can contribute with wild corners in their own gardens – must be more widely understood, and to that end, it would be good to see more investment in public education programmes.

However, by leaving pockets to grow and ‘do their own thing’, the juxtaposition of manicured and wild areas showcases deliberate choice. Even by adding simple interpretative signage, and providing those learning touchpoint opportunities, a huge difference could be made for biodiversity and public understanding simultaneously.

Looking at the bigger picture, there is a huge opportunity to unlock many estates for the ‘greater good’. Local authorities own all sorts of land across their jurisdiction – not only can they enhance the habitats around their built assets, but they will also own open land that can be further enhanced too.

Urban greening

There will be land under council and local authority ownership that may not be suitable for particular uses, such as areas prone to flooding. These spaces are perfect for making best use of what is there, whether developing it into built assets or not. When looking around any town, county or district, there will be vast spaces of land or even roofs and green walls that can deliver urban greening, all providing ample opportunities to enhance habitat and allowing us to get creative with native species to help biodiversity recovery.

Through exploration with partners like wildlife trusts and other landscape, we can examine opportunities to reinsert nature-based designs and ensure management of their legacy for future users, while also considering future use DEFRA’s BNG plans.

Education establishments also have lots of opportunities as they typically own larger plots of land that often have outdoor spaces for physical education. By introducing meadows, wildflower areas and more, not only can schools provide practice, hands-on learning environments for pupils and community groups, they work on their biodiversity too.

The transition

The changes to BNG will be a shock to the system for many. The way sites are often developed does not marry up cohesively with the new approach, meaning a transition period and the logistics of how rules will be applied are yet to be fully proven.

The first few months – even years – will prove interesting, and for some, hard. Many organisations will see plans rejected without the suitable BNG requirements and plans in place. Indeed, many may have a default position to buy the government credits, but engagement with the right specialists will keep this as the last resort it is designed to be. Many clients will examine offsite solutions and, in some cases, this will be the only option.

Now, however, meeting the 10% BNG requirement is something that everyone will need to do. The good news is that recent research by Carter Jonas suggests that more local authorities are adopting policies that will exceed the 10% minimum BNG requirement. The bad news is that many businesses do not have a strategy in place yet. They need to start devising one now.

The message is clear – the train is at the station, so get on board now, or you’ll miss it.

Emelye Kenyon, director and head of environmental services, Pick Everard