A Roadmap to Biodiversity Net Gain
25 April 2018
Today, Balfour Beatty launches the latest of its public policy papers, “A Better Balance: A Roadmap to Biodiversity Net Gain”. The paper calls for action to address the perceived tension between construction and the environment, through nine core recommendations.
In spite of the progress in tackling environmental issues over the past decade, much of the focus has been on carbon, waste and water. Given the UK’s substantial investment in infrastructure over the next 20 years, which is helping to deliver improvements in transport, broadband, energy, flood defences and housing, a new approach is required to counter the loss of biodiversity from continued infrastructure investment across the country.
Biodiversity Net Gain is a concept which is set to gain increasing traction over the coming years. It focuses on enriching biodiversity as a result of construction works, leaving a positive environmental legacy once works have completed.
Balfour Beatty has been leading the way, with a number of other organisations1, to develop a set of good practice principles2, which provide an effective way for infrastructure projects to deliver ‘net gains’ in biodiversity that in turn deliver the Government’s biodiversity commitments.
The good practice principles are built upon Balfour Beatty’s tried-and-tested Biodiversity Net Gain model, which has received wide acclaim from industry and statutory bodies including Natural England. The principles focus on avoiding biodiversity losses wherever possible; quantifying any losses incurred with gains in biodiversity to plan, budget, design, build and maintain Net Gain; and delivering Net Gain in collaboration with local stakeholders.
Phil Clifton, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Highways business, said: “By considering Biodiversity Net Gain as early as possible and ensuring that Biodiversity Net Gain measures are incorporated in the design, programme and budget, projects can generate long-term benefits for nature as well as wider benefits for society and the economy.
“It is imperative that we take action on this now so we can square the circle of how to deliver the infrastructure the country urgently needs, in a way which leaves an environmental legacy to be proud of.”
Balfour Beatty’s paper, “A Better Balance: A Roadmap to Biodiversity Net Gain” details nine recommendations, which amongst others, call for Biodiversity Net Gain to be made an obligatory part of the UK’s planning policies.
ENDS
1Partner organisations include: CIRIA, IEMA and CIEEM
2Good practice principles can be found here.
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Balfour Beatty
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Notes to editors:
- Balfour Beatty (www.balfourbeatty.com) is a leading international infrastructure group. With 28,000 employees, we provide innovative and efficient infrastructure that underpins our daily lives, supports communities and enables economic growth. We finance, develop, build and maintain complex infrastructure such as transportation, power and utility systems, social and commercial buildings.
- Our main geographies are the UK & Ireland, US and Far East. Over the last 100 years we have created iconic buildings and infrastructure all over the world including the London Olympics’ Aquatic Centre, Hong Kong’s first Zero Carbon building, the National Museum of the Marine Corps in the US and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.