Almost all the UK’s ecosystem assets are at high or medium-high risk, requiring public and private investment, the government’s nature department said in a report published on Wednesday.
The State of Natural Capital Report found investment in natural capital needs to tackle the substantial risks the economy and society is facing, following an assessment of the country’s environment.
“We lacked a clear picture that systematically brought together the best evidence about the state of our ecosystems, and which comprehensively demonstrated what this meant for the benefits provided,” said Tony Juniper, chair of Natural England in the foreword.
“This report does just that, in a way which is accessible and interprets the evidence so that people beyond the environmental sector can use it to take action.”
The report aims to express nature in economic terms to facilitate its incorporation into decision-makers’ plans, while proving an investment case, Juniper said. For example, pollination represents around £500 million of benefits in the agricultural industry.
“All of our ecosystem assets, and almost all the benefits they provide, are at high or medium-high risk,” the report found.
Benefits from ecosystems at high risk include clean water, flood protection, and timber. Those with medium-high risks include clean air, pollination, and pest control.
RISK REGISTER
The report introduced a ‘risk register’ to set out how threats to nature benefits affect a range of policy areas, such as net zero, climate adaptation, and food security.
“Thriving plants and wildlife, climate regulation, and plentiful water contribute to all policy areas, as they underpin the provision of all the other benefits,” said the report.
Combining existing evidence and expert opinion, the register aims to highlight all ecosystem assets at risk, particularly those with high or rapidly increasing impacts.
As well, it explains the actions that need to be taken to address these risks.
OPPORTUNITIES
Acting quickly to address the degradation of nature makes sense economically, the report said. “We need to invest in natural capital now, to reduce risks and reap rewards.”
According to the report, opportunities that could affect the future of natural capital included:
- Encourage nature-related financial disclosures
- Promote private and public investment in large-scale ecosystem support
- Avoid sectoral financial support which drives risk to ecosystem assets
- Continue the development and implementation of natural capital accounts
- Go beyond GDP and include assessment of natural capital, as one of the stocks in an assessment of national wealth
Observers welcomed the report, stressing the need for the type of information it provides and the role it can play in future policy-making and investment decisions.
“We fully support the report’s findings about the country’s natural assets, the urgent need for change, and the significant investment required to restore nature,” said Alastair Cooper, head of venture at sustainable agriculture investment firm Cibus Capital.
“We believe we need to invest significantly in new regenerative technologies and advanced food production systems. This approach will help protect our food security and prevent simply shifting the problem elsewhere.”
Samuel Sinclair, director of Biodiversify, said governments and businesses have a significant opportunity to confront biodiversity loss by making nature conservation a priority.
“Only by investing in our ecosystems can we build a more resilient and sustainable future,” said Sinclair.
In 2021, the UK’s Dasgupta review called for changes in how we think, act, and measure economic success, so as to better conserve the natural world.
England’s nature markets are evolving as a key component of its green finance strategy, focusing on areas such as biodiversity net gain – which aims to improve overall nature uplift by 10% across all developments.
By Thomas Cox – t.cox@carbon-pulse.com
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