A Developer’s Guide to Biodiversity Net Gain In the face of a half-century-long decline in biodiversity, the Environment Act 2021 has ushered in a pivotal change: a legal requirement for certain developments to achieve a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). This measure aims to ensure that new developments not only mitigate harm to our ecosystems but actively improve them,…
A Developer’s Guide to Biodiversity Net Gain
A Developer’s Guide to Biodiversity Net Gain In the face of a half-century-long decline in biodiversity, the Environment Act 2021 has ushered in a pivotal change: a legal requirement for certain developments to achieve a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). This measure aims to ensure that new developments not only mitigate harm to our ecosystems but actively improve them,…
A Developer’s Guide to Biodiversity Net Gain
A Developer’s Guide to Biodiversity Net Gain In the face of a half-century-long decline in biodiversity, the Environment Act 2021 has ushered in a pivotal change: a legal requirement for certain developments to achieve a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). This measure aims to ensure that new developments not only mitigate harm to our ecosystems but actively improve them,…
NGO successfully challenges planning inspectors’ report on energy performance standards
The recent decision (20 February 2024) of the High Court in R (Rights Community Action) v Secretary of State is a rare example of an NGO succeeding in a climate change legal action under English law. In the case, Rights Community Action persuaded the High Court to overturn a finding by the Secretary of State’s Planning Inspectors that a local…
UK Stewardship Code to Benefit from Fine-tuning
Review welcomed as an opportunity to streamline, clarify and raise standards, including greater tilt toward portfolio-level approaches. A review of the UK Stewardship Code 2020 should prompt evolution rather than revolution, according to industry experts, who want to see refinement aimed at further improving outcomes. The UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) recently revealed plans to conduct a fundamental…
Europe’s Nature Law Could Catalyse Sovereign SLBs
Investors, NGOs and think tanks welcome introduction of the contentious EU Nature Restoration Law, but criticise weakened proposals. The new EU Nature Restoration Law (NRL) has set a “powerful underlying policy foundation” to scale allocations from fixed-income funds into low-risk nature-related investments, according to think tank NatureFinance. On 27 February, the NRL was passed in a final EU Parliament vote,…
Take Five: The Waiting is Almost Over
A selection of the week’s major stories impacting ESG investors, in five easy pieces. The US and UK saw movement on two long-awaited fronts, while Europe felt the force of electoral anxiety. Clearing’s present danger – Financial market infrastructures are waking up to climate risks, even as some central banks are scaling back their work in this area. The Eurex…
ETS Must Address its Architectural Cracks
Robert Raney, Assistant Professor of Accounting and Control at IESE Business School, explains how and why Europe’s world-leading carbon market is being exploited. A frontrunner in pricing pollution, Europe is home to the world’s largest and most liquid carbon market. The EU’s Emission Trading System (ETS) was created in 2005, forming a cornerstone of the region’s efforts to reduce greenhouse…