OPPORTUNITIES FOR LAND OWNERS
HELPING TO REALISE YOUR NATURAL CAPITAL
With the new Environmental Land Management Schemes (ELMS) soon to come on stream and a growing appetite in both the private and public sector to offset carbon and contribute to biodiversity gain, the time has never been better to look at ways to earn extra income from your land through tree-planting and habitat creation.
How we can help
In addition to guiding you through the complexities of agri-environment grant applications and inspections, we can help you to access additional funds in the form of payment for biodiversity and carbon credits generated. We provide the link between you the land owner and private clients or businesses looking to offset their environmental impact or leave a lasting legacy.
Fitting in around farming
Our experience of land management and farming gives us insight into how to tailor a project to meet your aspirations for habitat creation while fitting in alongside a profitable business. We design practical solutions that ensure minimal disruption of cropping regimes. This may include tree planting, wetland creation, rewilding a section of the farm or field margin enhancement.
Woodland Creation and Carbon Capture
We work in partnership with Land Forest, which has a wealth of experience in establishing and managing UK woodlands and source trees from nurseries in the UK and Ireland Sourced and Grown Assurance Scheme (UIKSG). This ensures the highest standard of woodland creation from growing high quality saplings to establishing mature trees. In addition, we register tree planting projects with the Woodland Carbon Code to calculate the Pending Issuance Units (PIUs) and Woodland Carbon Units (WCUs) generated.
Rewilding and Biodiversity Gain
In the next two years developers will be required not simply to replace wildlife and countryside lost through construction, but to provide a 10% increase. This principle of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) will increase the market for biodiversity as well as carbon offset. We can plan, establish, manage and monitor rewilding or rewetting and other conservation projects to achieve specific biodiversity goals as well as assessing the number of Biodiversity Units (BUs) generated according to the Defra Biodiversity Metric.
How it works
We can help you every step of the way to:
1. Register your land
All you need to do initially is let us know the size and current state of the land you wish to put into conservation (see form below). Please note that all information submitted is strictly confidential and there is no obligation to take up any offset agreement at this stage.
2. Choose the right management options
We can advise on the options of woodland, wetland rewilding or existing habitat enhancement. We then assess the range of environmental goods and the payments/grants associated with a particular project. These might include carbon sequestration, wetland creation, peat restoration, river catchment management or biodiversity gain.
3. Find a suitable buyer
We match your land with a suitable buyer for any potential carbon or biodiversity units generated. In the case of biodiversity offset we liaise with local planning authorities and developers and when a project comes up that is a fit for your land, we will contact you to discuss a matching management plan.
4. Delivery and long-term revenue
Once we have designed a plan to the satisfaction of all parties we can help you deliver it. This could include securing agri-environment grants, arranging biodiversity assessments, sourcing and planting trees, landscaping, fencing or implementing a range of conservation measures.
5. Biodiversity offset
In the case of biodiversity offset, once you have approved the management plan and payment, we arrange the agreement between you and the developer. You then receive an upfront fee to commence the work and an annual payment for implementing the long-term management plan. We can help with ongoing maintenance and securing any necessary certification.