Developers should prepare for biodiversity net gain requirements to be higher and more complex than the statutory minimum, Carter Jonas has warned.
From this month, national guidance will require developers to increase biodiversity on their sites by at least 10%.
But a growing number of local authorities are introducing requirements that go far beyond this mandatory minimum.
The local plans of Guildford, Brighton and Hove, and Worthing already require or encourage a percentage net gain higher than 10%.
Research by Carter Jonas shows that this will rise to 17 local authorities as they sign off their local plans. These include Kingston Upon Thames and Tower Hamlets, which will have the most ambitious policies to date, requiring a minimum of 30% net gain. And more will follow as local authorities develop their plans.
David Alborough, natural capital consultant at Carter Jonas, said: “Our analysis provides developers, landowners and planning consultants with valuable insight into where the greatest demand for off-site BNG is emerging, which has important implications for developers and identifies opportunities for landowners.”
Sophie Davidson, associate in the firm’s research team, added: “In the coming months, developers will be assessing their options and refining their BNG strategies. Meanwhile, demand for land for BNG will rise substantially, affording diversification opportunities for landowners.”
Carter Jonas’ study of the emerging requirements has revealed some significant regional variations that show the expectation of a flat 10% requirement to be a fallacy.
BNG policies with a requirement in excess of 10% tend to be located in the south of England, it found. In the South East, 11 LPAs have a BNG policy (either emerging or adopted) calling for greater than 10% net gain, accounting for 16.7% of LPAs in the region.
In the North West, North East, West Midlands and East Midlands, no LPAs have gone beyond the statutory minimum.
“Some regional variation can be attributed to the influence of local nature partnerships, which is evident in the South,” explained Davidson. “For example, the Kent Nature Partnership is promoting a countywide target of 20% within Kent and Medway.”
This policy stemmed from a finding by a Kent County Council and Natural England report, which concluded that the biggest cost in most cases is to get to 10% net gain, while the increase to 15% or 20% is “generally negligible”.
“This has influenced emerging policies in Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Canterbury and Swale so far, representing 30.7% of the county,” said Davidson. “Likewise, the Surrey Nature Partnership and Sussex Local Nature Partnership have directed higher net gain targets in their counties.”
But the fact that many of these policies are emerging and have yet to be finalised, means that they could be dropped altogether.
Rossendale Borough Council in Lancashire was seeking a 20% net gain in its draft submission, but that was reduced to the statutory 10% in its final local plan.
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