ESB-UK Ltd: Business Supporting Biodiversity

Business Supporting Biodiversity (BSB) Scheme

ESB-UK Ltd: Business Supporting Biodiversity

Contents

1 Background ..................................................................................................................................... 1

2 Aims and Objectives ........................................................................................................................ 1

3 The BSB Strategy ............................................................................................................................. 2

4 BSB Scheme Logo ............................................................................................................................ 4

5 Monitoring, Reporting and Marketing Opportunities..................................................................... 4

6 How it Works ................................................................................................................................... 4

7 Costs ................................................................................................................................................ 6

Start-up cost ................................................................................................................................. 6

Annual audit cost .......................................................................................................................... 6

Potential additional costs ............................................................................................................. 6

ESB-UK Ltd: Business Supporting Biodiversity 1

1 Background

1.1 ESB-UK Ltd launched the Business Supporting Biodiversity (BSB) Scheme in December 2013

in order to provide a scientifically-informed and transparent means by which companies can

make a real contribution to the benefit and enhancement of biodiversity.

1.2 Our understanding and appreciation of the impacts of business on biodiversity and the

environment is developing rapidly and, in response to this increased knowledge and

awareness, companies are taking steps in order to assess and minimise their ecology and

nature conservation impacts. For example, many companies now have an Environmental

Management System in place and are certified under the British Standard ISO 14001 for

Environmental Management, and many are reassessing their approaches to activities such as

resourcing services and materials in order to ensure they are more environmentally

sustainable.

1.3 The BSB Scheme is not a means of minimising or offsetting the ecological or environmental

impacts of a company and it is not a benchmark or standard per se, instead the BSB Scheme

offers guidance and advice to companies, and acts as facilitator, enabling companies to set

in place measures that will make a real difference with regard to biodiversity. The scheme

provides companies with scientifically-informed, individually tailored and flexible strategies

to help ensure the measures they undertake will be of benefit.

1.4 ESB-UK’s primary area of interest is habitat ecology; the management, restoration,

enhancement, creation and expansion of habitats, from the soil to the canopy, terrestrial and

aquatic, in the lowlands and uplands. It is habitats that both comprise and support biodiversity

and, therefore, by developing a greater understanding of habitat ecology, by working to

maintain healthy and robust habitats that are more capable of adapting to the potential

impacts of climate change at a local level, and by encouraging more sustainable, informed

practices that take into account habitat requirements, a more robust, biodiverse and

sustainable environment may be achieved, benefitting all biodiversity, including ourselves.

2 Aims and Objectives

2.1 The BSB Scheme is not geared towards mitigating or offsetting biodiversity impacts, but

instead aims to facilitate companies wishing to contribute to the enhancement of

biodiversity, a concept that has been a requirement in the planning and development sector

for many years.

2.2 The objectives of the BSB Scheme include those listed below.

To provide advice and guidance to companies wishing to undertake measures of value

to biodiversity.

To advise and assist companies wishing to undertake measures to enhance the

biodiversity value of company owned and/or managed land.

To assist companies wishing to work with their clients for the benefit of biodiversity.

ESB-UK Ltd: Business Supporting Biodiversity 2

To guide and facilitate the funding of novel and applied scientific research that will be

of benefit to biodiversity.

3 The BSB Strategy

3.1 The BSB Scheme provides each company with a tailored BSB strategy, comprising a set of

measures to undertake.

3.2 Each strategy must adhere to a minimum set of requirements, as set out below. Additional

measures are developed in full consultation with the company involved so as to ensure that

they are both achievable and sustainable.

Strategies should be designed so as to achieve biodiversity benefit.

Strategies should comprise measures additional to those required under current

legislation or policy.

Strategies should be carried out in accordance with relevant legislative requirements,

including:

­ The Conservation of Habitats and Species (Amendment) Regulations 2012; and

­ The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended).

Strategies should be informed by relevant best practice guidelines.

Companies that own and/or manage land, should consider measures designed to

enhance the biodiversity value of the land, e.g. through habitat creation,

enhancement, restoration and appropriate long-term management.

Companies whose client’s own and/or manage land, should consider facilitating and/or

encouraging clients to adopt practices designed to enhance the biodiversity value of

the land.

Strategies should not comprise measures already funded or supported by another

means.

Strategies involving a third party should not comprise measures that would otherwise

be undertaken by the third party.

When measures undertaken include the provision of financial support of scientific

research, research should be: approved of and supervised by an appropriate

professional research body, such as a university research group or recognised scientific

research institute; and should be in a relevant field of research, applied science or

applied research (i.e. designed to improve our understanding of ecology and/or the

practical application of scientific knowledge for the benefit of biodiversity).

Regular monitoring should be undertaken as often as required and at least annually in

order to confirm adherence to the requirements of the strategy. Monitoring should be

ESB-UK Ltd: Business Supporting Biodiversity 3

undertaken in accordance with relevant best practice guidelines and should be

completed by ESB-UK or specialists approved by ESB-UK.

BSB strategies should be flexible so as to enable the findings of monitoring surveys to

be taken into account, e.g. should monitoring surveys confirm measures would be more

effective if undertaken in a different way, where practicable, strategies should be

amended so as to incorporate these alternative measures.

Companies should commit to informing their employees of BSB works undertaken in

order to encourage wider understanding and appreciation of biodiversity.

3.3 Although there is no minimum requirement with regard to the contribution a company should

make to the scheme, minimum requirements set out above have been developed so as to help

ensure a biodiversity benefit is achieved by each company member.

3.4 When companies (or a company’s clients) agree to undertake measures in order to enhance

the biodiversity value of land under their control, measures undertaken will be assessed with

regard to relevant policies and best practice guidelines, including those listed below, in order

to help ensure measures achieve real biodiversity benefit. References for each strategy will

be provided to each client.

UK Post-2010 Biodiversity Framework (Available at: http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-

6189)

Local Biodiversity Action Plans (BAPs)

Relevant Government policies and objectives

Environmental Stewardship requirements and guidance:

­ Natural England (2013). Entry Level Stewardship handbooks (conventional and

organic), 4th Editions. (Available at:

http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/2798159?category=45001).

­ Natural England (2013). Higher Level Stewardship handbook, 4th Edition (Available

at:

http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/2827091?category=45001).

Forestry Commission (England) best practice guidelines

Environment Agency (England) best practice guidelines

Specialist habitats (including soils) and species related guidelines

ESB-UK Ltd: Business Supporting Biodiversity 4

4 BSB Scheme Logo

4.1 Company members to the scheme may use the BSB logo:

5 Monitoring, Reporting and Marketing Opportunities

5.1 The BSB Scheme requires companies to commit to monitoring works undertaken. Monitoring

will be undertaken on an annual basis, or more frequently as required in order to confirm

compliance with the requirements of each strategy and to assess the impact of measures

undertaken.

5.2 Findings of monitoring surveys will inform ongoing strategies.

5.3 Companies will be provided with an annual monitoring and marketing report detailing their

contribution to the scheme and the impacts of their efforts.

5.4 Reports will be provided in electronic form only, in accordance with ESB-UK’s environmental

policy.

6 How it Works

6.1 We ask each company to answer a series of initial questions so that we may:

better understand the business (business activities and interests);

better understand the broad client base and client business activities and interests;

identify land assets or land management agreements; and

better understand the business’ objectives, aims and aspirations with regard to the

BSB scheme.

6.2 Taking the above into account, we research potential BSB opportunities that might be

achievable, sustainable and appropriate to your business and objectives, aims and

aspirations.

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6.3 BSB opportunities could include:

undertaking measures to enhance the biodiversity value of land assets, such as

habitat creation, rehabilitation and long-term management;

developing ways in which to achieve biodiversity benefit through services delivered

to your clients;

contributing to a local biodiversity enhancement project, such as through a financial,

technological and/or staff resources contribution; and

funding of relevant novel applied scientific research.

6.4 We will then meet with you to discuss:

your aspirations;

opportunities identified through our initial research;

potential alternative opportunities, if applicable;

potential implications for your business; and

the way forward.

6.5 Each BSB Strategy is developed in full consultation with the company involved and is designed

so as to adhere to the BSB policy and practice guidelines.

6.6 Once a strategy has been agreed, ESB-UK assists each company in undertaking measures

agreed, for example:

for those companies agreeing to fund unique scientific research, ESB-UK will establish

communications with supervising research groups and will agree methods of funding

and relevant research topics so as to ensure research is of an applied nature and

relevant to the aims of the BSB Scheme;

for companies that will be undertaking measures to enhance the biodiversity value of

their land, ESB-UK will develop a detailed Ecology Management Plan for the land and

will instruct, supervise and/or sign off site works as required and in order to ensure

works are completed in accordance with relevant legislative requirements; and

for companies that will be contributing to a conservation project, EBS-UK will facilitate

communications and agree company contributions so as to ensure measures will have

a real benefit to biodiversity.

6.7 Once strategies are underway, ESB-UK will monitor progress so as to confirm measures

continue to be undertaken in accordance with the BSB Strategy and to report to each company

the impacts of completed works. Monitoring reports will:

provide companies with a fully transparent record of their commitment to the BSB

Scheme; and

inform on-going BSB Strategies.

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7 Costs

7.1 In order to set up and monitor a company’s BSB strategy, an initial start-up and annual

audit fees will be charged by ESB-UK as described below.

Start-up cost Start-up charge of £250.00 to cover the cost of:

researching potential BSB opportunities;

discussing and agreeing a BSB strategy; and

producing a BSB strategy report.

Annual audit cost

Annual charge of £250.00 to cover the cost of:

an administrative audit of measures undertaken;

a site visit to confirm works undertaken, as required; and

producing an annual report (for company auditing and marketing purposes).

Potential additional costs Dependent on the requirements of a BSB strategy, additional ecology services may be

required. These will be discussed and agreed with the BSB company member during

the development of the BSB strategy.

Potential additional charges at the discounted rate of £200.00/day or

£30.00/hour to cover the cost of additional ecology services including:

ecology baseline surveys to inform an Ecology Management Plan to enhance

the biodiversity value of a site;

the production of a detailed Ecology Management Plan;

resourcing materials or contractors;

obtaining ecology licences as required by the Ecology Management Plan;

supervising site works;

ecology monitoring surveys in order to assess the effectiveness of the Ecology

Management Plan and inform on-going management;

additional site visits to monitor the implementation of a project (one annual

site visit will be included in the annual fee); and

additional meetings, such as with the clients of a BSB member, as requested

or required.

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Further details

To discover more about the BSB Scheme, please contact us

at: bsb@esb-uk.com

Or visit the Ecology Services for Biodiversity

website at: www.esb-uk.com