Habitat banking—how it could work in the UK

SummaryThe UK has until very recently been through a phase of significant development, in particular for housing and transport networks, but currently compensation for ecological impacts is often carried out poorly, if at all. Over the last 15 years support for habitat banking in environmental policy has grown rapidly, defined as the restoration, creation or enhancement of habitats for the purpose of providing similar resources through compensation for development impacts. It is an incredibly flexible tool, as demonstrated by the wide variety of situations in which it is applied, and it has already brought disparate parties together, including landowners, biologists, consultants, planners, and developers. A common concern with the concept relates to the risk and uncertainty surrounding the restoration of habitat functions after the original habitat has been lost. Other concerns relate to the regulation of habitat banks, and the calculation of compensation requirements such as what should be the ratio of new habitat or resource created to environmental impact caused. We address these and other issues and propose two models for habitat banking in the UK, which could also be adapted for use elsewhere in Europe. We highlight numerous potential advantages for biodiversity, human welfare, and the economy, and argue that the most effective way to address doubts surrounding the habitat banking concept would be through one or a number of pilot projects, which need to be implemented now.