Greater Manchester Biodiversity Net Gain Investment Facility
Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) has the potential to deliver at scale, leveraging £6 million annually into the Greater Manchester (GM) city region. However, implementation is currently piecemeal without consistent mechanisms, sufficient capacity and a regulated market managing supply and demand. Building upon the learnings from Wildlife Trusts’ round 1 NEIRF projects we will engage key stakeholders including investors, buyers and sellers of BNG units to seek ‘buy in’ for a GM wide BNG Investment Facility (IF). The facility will maximise the impact of BNG in GM through economies of scale, sharing best practice and strategic integration into the LNRN. The project will develop the supply and demand sides of the market, standardise regulatory requirements for delivering BNG and develop legal / financial structures necessary for the effective operation of the market. We will pump prime the market by initiating BNG sites with a total area of 230ha, promoting the sites for sale on a web-based platform. The facility will build the capacity necessary to grow economies of scale to attract investment into new supply projects. Strategic prioritisation will deliver against 25 YEP goals “Thriving Plants and Wildlife” and “Mitigation of and adaptation to climate change”. Delivering 230 hectares of habitat improvements, with a pipeline of further offsite sites and Habitat Banks.
Project Aim
To test an innovative Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) Investment Facility across a Combined Authority (CA) area that can be reproduced and knowledge surrounding it shared.
Project partners
Funding model
Revenue will be generated through the sale of Biodiversity Net Gain credits. For example, in LWT’s round 1 IRF project, Salford City Council’s (SCC) Chat Moss site was estimated to have the potential to attract a combined potential BNG & carbon investment of £2 million for restoration of priority habitats, with a number of negotiations with private investors currently taking place.
Model forecasting for SCC suggests that BNG credit income could reach £400,000 per annum (33 units) based on SCC BNG policy and development pipeline. Sites fitting the strategic priorities identified within the GM LNRS will be identified and baseline assessments of their biodiversity value undertaken.
Management plans will be developed, appropriate to the site, in order to increase the biodiversity value of site through interventions to create new priority habitats. Across GM this will involve creation of enclosed farmland; mountain, moor and heathland; freshwaters and wetlands; woodland and semi‐natural grassland. The environment benefits accrued will be an increase in the extent and condition of priority habitats across Greater Manchester. The project will also consider other nature-based revenue options such as ELMS, carbon, and flood management, building upon the stackable investment/blended finance initiatives currently being trialled.
Future Investment Potential
The key measurement of benefits for buyers and sellers with be through the BNG Metric 3.0. Biodiversity metric 3.0, when used with appropriate professional advice and ecological knowledge, enables biodiversity to be measured in a consistent and robust way. The metric can be used to inform and improve planning, design, land management and decision – The centralised governance of the BNG market through the Investment Facility will ensure that the off-site BNG market operates according to the relevant legislation. This includes ensuring that; Surveys are conducted by a ‘competent person’, Biodiversity metrics have been correctly calculated and verified, Management Plans are realistic and will provide the credits promised, Process and structure in place for ongoing site monitoring and undertaken by a competent person. The biodiversity outputs will also be measured against the 5 Year Environment Plan for Greater Manchester and the LNRS. Carbon benefits will be measured using IUCN Carbon code. GMCA 5 year Environment Plan NE KPIs include (NE.1) Land Managed Sustainably, (NE.2) Water Bodies enhanced and (NE.4) Increase investment into Natural Environment. The economies of scale benefiting both buyers and sellers will be quantified through financial modelling and capital structuring undertaken as part of BNG Investment Facility set up.
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