EIR - Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) [Oct 2024]

Key information

Request reference number: MGLA190924-1280

Date of response: October 2024

Summary of request

Request:

Biodiversity Net Gain implementation (planning/ecology) - How the council is implementing Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).

Response:

Please find below the information we hold within the scope of your request below:

1. Please can you fill in the table below to indicate what, if any, software the council has obtained specifically to help with implementing the following aspects of BNG?

BNG-related need	Software obtained for this purpose
Validation of applications, including checking that the correct version of the Biodiversity Metric has been submitted.	None
Determination of applications subject to BNG, including assessment of ecological considerations.	None
Determining if the biodiversity gain objective (biodiversity gain condition) is met.	None
Monitoring of planning obligations set out under S106 agreements or Conservation Covenants, analogous to other planning obligations.	None
Ecological monitoring of BNG habitats, a new statutory duty required by legislation, including ensuring that individual habitats on a given site are progressing in line with expectations set out in the Habitat Management and Monitoring Plan.	None
Statutory reporting of BNG habitat progress under the NERC Act Biodiversity Duty.	None

2. Is the council generating income, or planning to generate income, by charging BNG monitoring fees?

If so, how are you calculating this fee?

N/A

3. Please can you fill in the table below, with respect to whether the council has made use of the government’s new burdens funding for BNG:

Financial Year	BNG burdens funding spent by the council	What BNG burdens funding was spent on
23-24	£26,807	Staff costs
24-25	£26,807 (note, this is still being spent)	Staff costs

Mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements have recently come into effect nationally as a requirement of the Environment Act 2021. As national mandatory BNG has only recently been introduced, information on implementation so far is limited. Responsibility for implementing and monitoring BNG requirements sits with the determining planning authority, which in most cases in London will be boroughs. The GLA is considering its role in understanding the impact of the new national BNG requirement in London.

Useful links

Biodiversity in London

Local Nature Recovery Strategy

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