Need a Biodiversity Net Gain Survey?

Legal Framework to Protect Nature

Biodiversity net gain was introduced to counteract the decline in biodiversity in the UK and is now a planning requirement, with legislation in force to ensure that development does not harm nature.

When it considers biodiversity net gain Bristol City Council will require a biodiversity net gain plan to demonstrate that development plans in this part of south west England comply with the planning policy before it will grant planning permissions.

Biodiversity net gain legislation

Biodiversity net gain bng was first proposed in the Environment Bill which became the Environment Act 2021 after gaining royal assent. After a two-year transition period, biodiversity net gain became mandatory for local planning authorities and developers and is a planning condition in the National Planning Policy Framework.

Biodiversity net gain was introduced to ensure that new development projects in England will enhance the existing condition of the natural environment to a measurably better state upon completion. Through careful design, biodiversity value will be retained and improved by at least 10%, and the enhanced area must be maintained for 30 years. Delivery of the net gain on-site is preferred or through the private market for diversity units. As there are few exemptions, biodiversity net gain applies to most planning projects overseen by local planning authorities in England; refusal to comply with the law could result in penalties and delays.

The Biodiversity Net Gain Assessment

A biodiversity net gain survey must be conducted by a licensed ecological consultant. The process involves the consultant making a physical inspection of the proposed development site to assess all ecological features such as European-protected species of animals and plants and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. This information will be entered into the universal biodiversity metric developed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs enabling the site’s biodiversity units to be assessed.

This metric will then be compared with the expected changes to the site post development, to calculate the change in the site’s ecological value following completion of the project. The gap between the two measurements will need to be met to ensure the site has the same environmental calculation as pre-development, and then this figure must be expanded on by a 10% gain in biodiversity. With this data, the ecological consultant will be able to work out the best way of enhancing biodiversity on the site.

Local planning authorities will recognise that the bng assessment contains credible information about the site and that its recommendations for enhancing biodiversity will deliver the required net gain, enabling it to support a planning application. The expert advice in the bng plan may include information about new habitat creation to meet the 10% requirement, which may involve minor or more significant interventions to ensure the site can achieve biodiversity net gain requirements. If it proves impossible to deliver the net gain on-site, the bng plan will explain the process of purchasing the off-site biodiversity net gain units or biodiversity credits required to secure planning consent. The information should satisfy local councils that all the necessary steps have been taken to enable them to grant planning permission.

Biodiversity net gain Bristol City Council approach

In response to the introduction of biodiversity net gain, the Bristol City Council Ecological Emergency Action Plan 2021-2025 was created to explain the legislation and other relevant policy areas. It provides information on how local nature recovery strategies enable the delivery of biodiversity net gain through mapping existing desirable habitats and calculating ways of enhancing the natural world by upgrading relevant features.

Bristol’s One City Ecological Emergence Strategy involves partners across Bristol. Its vision is that 30% of the land in Bristol is managed for the benefit of wildlife; it also wants to reduce pesticide use by 50% and improve water quality. The initiative is identifying opportunities to enhance Bristol’s ecological networks and listing species to monitor to assess the progress made.

Do you need a biodiversity net gain assessment in Bristol?

It’s important to engage an ecological consultancy with experience of working on biodiversity net gain plans that satisfy the requirements of local planning authorities. The ecological consultants will explain how to enhance biodiversity on your site: the expert advice in their report should enable you to make the best case for your scheme as it progresses through the planning process, enabling it to achieve planning permission.