Green projects given support to attract private sector investment to tackle climate change and restore nature
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Four projects which will protect and restore valuable habitats have
been selected to receive funding in a pilot scheme to encourage
sustainable private sector investment in our natural environment.
Defra, the Environment Agency (EA), Esmée Fairbairn
Foundation (EFF) and Triodos Bank UK have formed a collaboration to
support environmental projects to create sustainable funding
models. Having been sourced and evaluated by Triodos Bank UK
the projects...Request free trial
Four projects which will
protect and restore valuable habitats have been selected to
receive funding in a pilot scheme to encourage sustainable
private sector investment in our natural environment.
Defra, the Environment Agency (EA), Esmée
Fairbairn Foundation (EFF) and Triodos Bank UK have formed a
collaboration to support environmental projects to create
sustainable funding models.
Having been sourced and evaluated by Triodos
Bank UK the projects will receive grant funding from Defra, the
EA and EFF to support their development, complete business plans
to attract private sector investment, and deliver long-term
environmental benefits and sustainable financial returns.
The four projects receiving funding
are:
Emma Howard Boyd, Chair of the Environment
Agency, said:
“In England we are increasingly seeing new
extreme weather accelerate from wettest to driest and back again,
restoring nature is key to managing this.
“You can’t put a price on nature, but
investing in its recovery can generate a steady return and will
make the UK economy more clean and resilient. These projects are
designed to attract investment into local economies while
developing models for businesses to use and scale up around the
world.”
Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said:
“The UK is taking a leading global role in
tackling climate change and biodiversity loss, but given the
scale of the challenge ahead it is crucial that environmental
projects have the tools they need to attract private sector
investment alongside our government support.
“Ensuring we have a green recovery from
coronavirus will be especially important at this time, and this
collaboration provides vital financial expertise and support to
create funding models which can be used by other projects up and
down the country.”
The government’s 25 Year Environment Plan made
clear that while the public sector will continue to be an
important source of funding for the natural environment, it is
critical that this is alongside more private sector investment to
protect and enhance our environment.
That is why the government committed £10m in
the Budget to support natural environment projects to attract
private sector investment through the Natural Environment Impact
Fund, from 2021.
The government and the Environment Agency are
also working to ensure that our recovery from coronavirus is
clean and resilient, tackling climate change and boosting
nature.
In order to help project developers up and
down the country attract investment, the lessons learned from
these projects will also be made freely available.
Caroline Mason, Chief Executive of Esmée
Fairbairn Foundation, said:
“We need bold action and impact like never
before when it comes to protecting our natural world. If the
current crisis is to be successfully reversed, more money will be
crucial. With these grants we hope to explore both the potential
and the limits for generating revenue to deliver environmental
outcomes. If we understand the models that can make money and can
be funded through private capital, we can raise additional money
for nature and make sure that public and philanthropic funding
goes where it’s most needed.”
Dr Bevis Watts, Chief Executive of Triodos
Bank UK, said:
“We have invested over two years of our
resources and expertise into finding viable financial projects in
this new area and were delighted to bring these partners
together. We believe that connecting economic outcomes to
investment in environmental restoration is possible and can
deliver benefits, in terms of carbon storage, air quality, flood
management and human health, as well as enhancing biodiversity
and wildlife habitats.
“Triodos has always been a pioneer in
sustainable finance, for example in early renewable energy and
organic food & farming. Now linking the economic and societal
benefits we take for granted from nature to investment in its
restoration is a key challenge we are leading on. The finance
sector needs to play its role and use more imagination in how
economic outcomes can be linked to investment in nature. We hope
we can build on these pilot projects and replicate them to secure
further investment in addressing the environmental crises we
face.”
Natural Flood Management in the River
Wyre catchment
The use of natural flood management, including
the building of leaky dams, the creation of bog, and the
rewetting of peat, on 70 hectares of the River Wyre catchment by
the Rivers Trust would help to reduce the frequency of
flooding for a number of properties in Lancashire.
At the same time as reducing flood risk, these
natural flood management schemes will create new habitats for
wildlife and help to mitigate climate change through the storage
of greenhouse gases in the newly created wetlands and
peatlands.
The seed funding will allow The Rivers Trust
to work with the Wyre Rivers Trust, Environment Agency, United
Utilities, Triodos Bank UK, Co-op Insurance and Flood Re, to
develop a financial instrument that would allow upfront
investment from the private sector to be reimbursed by the
beneficiaries of a healthier environment.
Mark Lloyd, Chief Executive of The Rivers
Trust, said:
“At a time when we are facing a climate
emergency, we must find new ways to invest in recovery of the
natural processes that protect and support us, at a scale and
pace that can make a difference. Hard engineering alone will not
address our future flood risk challenges and must be supplemented
by natural solutions.
“We believe that by implementing natural flood
risk management features at scale, we could see significant
financial returns from a better river environment. We expect this
pilot to lead to future natural capital investment and build a
credible case for green investment to restore our river
landscapes.”
Restoration of the River Caen
wetlands
Sitting on the northern bank of the River
Caen, the Caen Wetlands project is a bold and innovative proposal
to create a stunning habitat and visitor resource in northern
Devon. The wetlands site is one
of the UK’s most important sites for wetland birds but is under
pressure from human impacts, climate change, and rising sea
levels.
Devon Wildlife Trust has recently completed on
the purchase of its 57th Nature Reserve – Horsey Island.
Located in the heart of the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Reserve,
Horsey Island is a wildlife rich area of intertidal wetland
habitats extending to over 80 hectares. Horsey borders the tidal
reaches of the River Caen which flows through Braunton and out
into the Taw Estuary.
Alongside the restoration of the habitat, the
development of the site for ecotourism through a visitor centre
and other facilities will provide a source of income, with the
seed funding being used by Devon Wildlife Trust to develop a
business case for investment in this project.
Harry Barton, Devon Wildlife Trust CEO,
said:
“This is a truly outstanding natural and
cultural landscape – over the coming months we’ll be working
alongside a wide range of partners, expert consultants and local
communities to explore the opportunities to create new
wetland habitats and visitor facilities, where people will have
the opportunity to see north Devon’s wildlife at its best.”
Poole Harbour Nutrient Management
Scheme
One of the largest natural harbours in the
world, Poole Harbour in Dorset is of international importance to
wildlife, being home to a vast range of aquatic life and wetland
birds, including egrets, ringed plovers, and grebe.
However, as a habitat for wildlife, it is now
under pressure, with nutrients such as nitrate from agriculture
in its catchment flowing down into the harbour and leading to a
rapid growth of algae which smothers the estuarine habitat and
reduces the amount of food available for birds.
Through the Poole Harbour Nutrient Management
Scheme, the National Farmers Union (NFU) is aiming to work with
and support the farmer-led collaboration in the catchment,
equipping them with tools to reduce their use of nitrates.
The proposed innovative, industry-led model is
designed to offer both environmental benefits and productivity
gains for farming businesses. The local community, water
companies and local government will all see benefits from the
improved water quality.
Melanie Squires, NFU South West regional
director, said:
“The project will enable us to develop
exciting, innovative, solution-based collaborative working
methods across the agricultural and land management sectors and
beyond. Working in partnership we aim to deliver significant
reductions in nitrate leaching, improving water quality in Poole
Harbour and the rest of the catchment. All parties with an
interest in the catchment are involved in this work, which has
farming and farmers at its heart.”
Peatland restoration in the
Pennines
Peatlands have a vital part to
play in tackling climate change, storing more carbon than all
other types of vegetation in the world combined, and damage to
peatlands is a major source of carbon emissions.
The peatlands of the south and
west Pennines are some of the most degraded in uplands in Europe,
and as well as being damaged in the past by the coal-fired
industry in Manchester and Sheffield,
they are facing future pressure from hot summers and wet winters
due to climate change.
The Moors for the Future
Partnership is already working to restore and conserve peatland
in the area, but needs to attract greater investment in order to
carry out this work on a larger scales to protect more of this
vital habitat.
It is hoped this project will be successful in
developing a range of returns, including financial, for
investors.
Christopher Dean, Head of Programme Delivery
from the Moors for the Future Partnership, said:
“The partnership has been operating for 17
years and has transformed huge areas of bare and eroding peat. As
these peatlands are at the forefront of the effects of climate
change, there is an urgent need for restoration to continue so
that we can deliver full ecosystem service returns.
This pilot is a natural successor to the
landscape-scale work that has already been achieved and will
allow the partnership to pioneer the development of the next
generation of sustainable financing for vital peatland
conservation work.”
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