The reality of the UK’s net zero ambition: the role of carbon capture

In a previous article, we outlined the £8.6 billion opportunity for private investment into peatland restoration - in Scotland alone. But as the rules and standards around corporate climate action evolve, there is a risk that certain types of nature-based solution are side-lined, because they reduce emissions rather than removing carbon from the atmosphere. Writes Matt Hay, Associate, Natural Capital & Sustainable Investment.

The Environment Act 2021 has received Royal Assent at a pivotal time while COP26 is coming to its conclusion. The huge public and parliamentary demand to improve our state of nature has resulted in the UK becoming the first country to set a legal target to halt species decline by 2030.

It has been hard to miss the seemingly constant upward trajectory of a lot of agricultural commodities within the last 12 months, let’s look at some of the contributory factors causing this rise.

As the reports show, we are now in an agricultural transition period. Changes for farmers will be phased in over seven years. Over this time the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) will be gradually reduced in a tiered system.

South Cambridgeshire District Council and Cambridge City Council (Greater Cambridge) are currently consulting on a new Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) which includes an ambitious Biodiversity Net Gain target for planning applications. Planning Associate, Anthony Child explains more in his blog.

Both carbon sequestration and biodiversity enhancement are becoming increasingly necessary to both reduce emissions and offset environmental impacts generated by development in the UK.