BNG Bug Spreads North - County-wide Biodiversity Net Gain assessments prove success for farmers 

Ecology, Biodiversity Net Gain, BNG, Sustainable farming

Client: North Yorkshire Council 

Stakeholders: farmers, developers, landowners

 

Brief:

As part of a region-wide farm audit scheme commissioned by North Yorkshire Council, our ecologists visited farms up and down the county at the beginning of this year to conduct Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) baseline surveys on a range of farmland at no cost to landowners, coming up with recommendations to improve the biodiversity of the land while allowing it to still be used for farming. For many who had not heard of it before, this project showed them the potential of BNG on their land – how they could get paid to increase the biodiversity on their land while carrying on farming – while also providing them with fully compliant reports to begin their journeys as offsite BNG providers. 

 

 

Opportunities

  • To introduce and demonstrate the potential of BNG across a large number of farms across the region, including within the North York Moors;
  • To continue working with farmers to strive for more sustainable farming practices across the country;
  • To form a partnership with North Yorkshire Council, working to integrate biodiversity assessment findings into carbon reduction plans;
  • To discuss ecologically-focused management practices with enthusiastic farmers and landowners who were keen and full of ideas on how to benefit the wildlife on their land;
  • To offer landowners the financial space to manage ecologically valuable parcels of land which have been historically neglected due to their limited agricultural use;
  • To be involved in the BNG process from start to finish, surveying existing habitats and designing new habitats and their placement, through to handing the clients legally compliant reports to help them register their land as an offsite provider.

Challenges

  • The greatest challenge of this project was the large number of sites which required surveying and reports which all needed completing under a tight deadline. Conversations with landowners helped to streamline things by cutting out undesirable habitat recommendations as well as land parcels which wouldn't be a good fit for BNG.
  • Another challenge was working with a range of stakeholders all with different levels of knowledge about BNG. BNG is still such a new concept, and most people have never heard of it, including landowners who might benefit from it and professionals alike. Educating people on what BNG is and how it can benefit landowners and their land is incredibly important – at Tomson we see this as an integral part of ensuring the success of BNG across the entire country, as well as achieving regional and national goals for biodiversity and the climate. We understand that BNG is often daunting and unfamiliar, but it isn't rocket science! We're always happy to chat about BNG.

 

 

 

Outcomes

This project culminated in farmers and landowners across North Yorkshire and the North York Moors having fully compliant ecological reports to pursue offsite BNG on their land, as well as having a say in each step of the process. They identified land which was particularly agriculturally unproductive or which was already rich in biodiversity and told us what they ideally wanted out of the land if management was to shift towards a more ecological focus. They were also guided through the process of registering their land as a BNG offsite provider, ready to link their BNG units with developments in the region or to market their units on online marketplaces.
Landowners which pursued offsite BNG were able to get paid to manage their land for biodiversity, while also continuing to farm;

A webinar was carried out alongside NFU Energy and North Yorkshire Council with landowners who had audits on their farms as well as other landowners interested in the scheme. This generated some interesting discussion around BNG and the practicalities of pursuing it, as well as communication from individual farmers to follow up their reports and take next steps in their BNG journeys.
The project was a success for farmers and North Yorkshire Council alike. A second wave of council-funded farm audits is set to take place in the near future, aimed at decarbonising farms and improving the biodiversity on site. Get in touch at info@tomsonconsulting.co.uk today to start your BNG journey.