Why is a BNG assessment needed?
Under the Environment Act 2021 and national policy, the majority of planning applications in England will need to achieve a net gain in biodiversity post-development from 2023. Developers must avoid losses in biodiversity on a site. If this cannot be achieved, new habitat creation on-site or off-site will be required. Biodiversity credits will also be available to developers and these constitute a form of off-site habitat creation.
What is a BNG assessment?
A BNG assessment looks at the habitats present on a development site, their extent and their condition in order to calculate a baseline score in biodiversity units. A post-development biodiversity unit score is then calculated by working out the changes in these areas post-development and factoring any new habitat creation on the developed site. The proposed development will need to achieve a net gain in habitat units above the baseline score.
Seasonality
A BNG assessment can be completed at any time of the year.
Who can do the assessment?
BNG assessments should be carried out by qualified and experienced professionals with an understanding of nature conservation legislation and planning. An inexperienced surveyor could result in planning refusal and costly delays.
Survey cost
BNG assessment prices are dependent on the scale of development – please enquire for a quote here.
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