Biodiversity Duty

The Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 2006 originally required public authorities in England to conserve biodiversity when carrying out their functions. The Environment Act 2021 strengthened this duty by amending Section 40 of the NERC Act, so that public authorities must now conserve and enhance biodiversity through the way they exercise their functions.

This strengthened duty also introduces a new legal reporting requirement for local authorities. Each authority must set out the actions it has taken to conserve and enhance biodiversity and outline how it intends to continue meeting this duty. By law, the report must include:

• Actions the Council has already taken to meet its Biodiversity Duty
• Further opportunities for the Council to meet this duty during the next reporting period (up to 2030)
• A summary of biodiversity net gain that has been achieved, or is expected to be achieved, through approved biodiversity gain plans
• Any other information the local authority considers relevant

The Council has now completed this process and produced its first Biodiversity Duty Report.