A new report launched today (12 May) by the British Ecological Society details how nature can be a powerful ally in responding to the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
The report offers, for the first time, a complete assessment of the potential of nature-based solutions (NbS) to mitigate climate change and benefit biodiversity in the UK. Incorporating contributions from over 100 experts, the comprehensive evaluation of the available evidence details the strengths, limitations and trade-offs of NbS in different habitats across the UK.
Professor Jane Memmott, President of the British Ecological Society, said: “The Nature-based Solutions report offers a real basis for setting effective policies and incentives that will maximise the benefits of nature-based solutions in the UK for the climate and biodiversity.”
The report finds that NbS can provide a valuable contribution to climate change mitigation and can simultaneously protect and enhance biodiversity, improve human wellbeing, bring economic benefit, and provide a wide range of ecosystem services.
Despite the huge range of benefits NbS have, the report makes clear that they should be seen as complementary to other climate and conservation actions, not as a replacement to them.
A priority NbS identified in the report is the restoration of the UK’s peatlands. The UK’s 2.6 million hectares of peatland contain around 3 billion tonnes of carbon, but most are in a degraded state and are no longer actively sequestering carbon. Estimates suggest that they could be emitting 23 million tonnes of CO2e annually, equivalent to approximately half the amount released through the nation’s agricultural sector.
Restoring degraded peatlands through rewetting and revegetation can reduce and eventually halt these emissions as well as bring benefits in terms of biodiversity conservation and flood protection.
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Posted On: 12/05/2021