DEFRA is consulting on plans to require developers to deliver a ‘biodiversity net gain’ when building new housing or commercial development – meaning habitats for wildlife must be enhanced and left in a measurably better state than they were pre-development.
The consultation will run until 10 February.
The National Trust states that ‘creating new sources of finance from developer contributions, biodiversity net gain could provide money for the delivery of the Government’s planned Nature Recovery Network. Developer contributions could be used to deliver biodiversity improvements on-site or nearby. This would dramatically improve the quality of housing developments and give people the chance to have a stake in their local environments’.