Local Planning Authorities (LPA's) have the authority to establish guidelines that promote biodiversity net gain (BNG) and assist in identifying suitable local areas for habitat creation and improvement. This helps landowners who wish to sell off-site biodiversity units and developers who need to meet BNG requirements.
LPAs also ensure that developers are aware of the BNG requirement and can define local policy requirements for BNG, such as local nature recovery strategies. The 10% is the national minimum although several local planning authorities (LPAs) including Kent Nature Partnership (KNP), who are working with local planning authorities to progress the adoption of a 20% target for Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).
LPAs are also required to report on the BNG plans they receive and monitor their implementation. The metric increases transparency and accountability for biodiversity-impact mitigation plans. A standardised metric should make it easier to judge the legality of ecology-based arguments against planning applications, although this requires officers in the planning authority to fully understand the different component measurements that make up the number of units.
Under the new Environment Act 2021, all planning permissions in England (with a few exceptions) must achieve a minimum of 10% biodiversity net gain. Kent Wildlife Trust, in collaboration with the Kent Nature Partnership, is advocating for districts in Kent to surpass this requirement and aim for 20% BNG. Kent is not the only region striving for higher gains in nature, and we can gain insights from districts like Guildford that have recently implemented Local Plan Policies for 20% BNG.
The key principle behind achieving BNG is the mitigation hierarchy, which prioritises avoiding impacts on wildlife, followed by mitigation measures, and only as a last resort, compensating for any losses. If implemented effectively, BNG provides a significant opportunity for the sector to address the ecological emergency and create a positive legacy for both people and wildlife.
Kent Wildlife Trust’s Planning and Policy Team are already providing advice and comments to local planning officers to push for BNG assessments to be held to the highest standards, including the need for habitat creation and enhancement plans to be realistic and deliverable.
Our environmental consultancy, part of the Kent Wildlife Trust Group are working with local authorities to help develop their strategies and provide a range of BNG services including a BNG offsetting portal which lists client units available for sale now. By working with Adonis Blue you can access a wide range of BNG services and access expert advice and experience specific to Kent.
In Kent, the local nature recovery strategy and BNG unit registry is being developed by Kent County Council under the initiative Making Space for Nature who are working with a range of key stakeholders including Kent Wildlife Trust to develop their strategy and launch Kent's BNG registry.
©Ross Hoddinott
