Sophie Prescott - Examining Biodiversity Net Gain: Investigating Offsetting Opportunity and Site Selection

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast Student Research Symposium at the University of Southampton, we are joined by BSc Geography student Sophie Prescott for an exploration of her dissertation research titled: “Examining Biodiversity Net Gain: A GIS-Based Investigation of Offsetting Opportunity and Site Selection in Thanet”. We discuss the importance of implementing biodiversity net gain in the UK whilst examining biodiversity offsetting and site selection in Thanet. Biodiversity net gain has been implemented in the UK and could aid progress towards sustainable development goal 11: sustainable cities and communities, and goal 15: life on land. Biodiversity offsetting can be used to reach goals of nature conservation whilst allowing urban development, however site selection of offsetting is extremely important to maximise the benefits to biodiversity. This episode discusses using methods including an analytic hierarchy process and a multi-criteria decision analysis to prioritise biodiversity offsetting sites in Thanet. This method could be applied across local planning authorities in the UK to develop a biodiversity offsetting site selection framework, identifying appropriate offsetting sites. Site selection is extremely important for successfully achieving nature recovery targets in the UK. Some further reading if you want to know more:  Jarvis, M., (2022) The Environment Act 2021: biodiversity net gain and its implementation, Environmental Law and Management, 32 Zu Ermgassen, S.O.S.E., Marsh, S., Ryland, K., Church, E., Marsh, R., Bull, J.W., (2021) Exploring the ecological outcomes of mandatory biodiversity net gain using evidence from early-adopter jurisdictions in England, Conservation Letters, 14(6), DOI 10.1111/conl.12820 Bateman, I., Balmford, A., (2023) Current conservation policies risk accelerating biodiversity loss, Nature, 618, pp.671–674, DOI 10.1038/d41586-023-01979-x Guest: Sophie Prescott (Third-Year BSc Geography Student) Host: Prof Simon Kemp Editor: Libby Kale If you are interested in engaging with more sustainability-related material take a look at both Instagram and X: @meliorapodcast