Biodiversity mitigation hierarchy

The mitigation hierarchy when applied to biodiversity, in particular biodiversity net gain (BNG), is a decision tree designed to help effectively manage the impact developments have on biodiversity, as such the principles and process of the biodiversity net gain procedures generally adopt the same approach.

The hierarchy forms an inverted triangle with the highest impact measures at the top (similar in principle to the waste hierarchy for construction) with avoidance the highest impact approach to be considered first and foremost, whilst as a last resort in some cases contributions to alternative biodiversity projects may be considered where other options are not possible. The 5 steps; Avoidance, Minimisation, Restoration, Offsetting and Contributions are described below.

• Avoiding the impacts on a development on biodiversity through location, scale or timing is the first priority.
• Minimising a developments impact on biodiversity through approach and design should be prioritised next.
• Restoring habitats damaged or degraded by a development such as replanting or reseeding next.
• Offsetting refers to compensating unavoidable impacts of development, possibly elsewhere on a different site.
• Contributing financially to wider conservation efforts is seen as a last but viable option in certain cases.

For further information see Natural England Biodiversity Metric 3 or visit BNG Q and A or BNG.gov

See also: Mitigation hierarchy.

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