A parcel of farmland in Coverdale is believed to have become the first Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) “habitat bank” within the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority area.
The 75-acre site will be managed to enhance wildlife and generate “BNG units”, which can be sold to developers needing to offset biodiversity losses from new building projects.
Under a landmark legal agreement, the National Park Authority will monitor the site for the next 30 years to ensure biodiversity improvements are delivered, working alongside Habitat NW Ltd.
The scheme allows developers who cannot achieve biodiversity gains on-site to fund environmental improvements elsewhere, a process known as “off-site” biodiversity net gain.
It is hoped the Coverdale project will be the first of many such habitat banks across the National Park, contributing to wider landscape-scale nature recovery ambitions.
Ecologist Russell Grey, one of the landowners, said the land had previously been intensively grazed and was “relatively species poor and of low ecological value”.
Plans for the site include creating wetter habitats to slow water flow and encourage more diverse vegetation, while supporting species such as curlew, lapwing and golden plover.
Local farmer Stuart Raw has been brought in to graze cattle on the land, helping improve habitat structure while continuing agricultural use.
He said: “The habitat bank is not taking away agricultural production. It’s utilising the land in a different way. That’s important for the Dales.”
Andrew Murday, Member Champion for Development Management at the National Park Authority, said the initiative reflects a commitment to nature recovery.
He added: “It is significant for us that this first habitat bank does not take farmland out of production. It is through nature-friendly farming, more than anything else, that we are going to bring about nature recovery in the National Park.”
Mr Murday said biodiversity net gain could make a “meaningful contribution” to environmental targets, noting that developers from outside the region could purchase units generated in the Dales—delivering conservation benefits locally without the impact of development.
