Restoring Scotland’s natural environment - Scottish Government
New targets to enhance nature and protect biodiversity.
Legislative proposals to help restore nature and protect biodiversity in Scotland have been introduced to Parliament.
The Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill, which will now be considered by MSPs, would place a duty on Ministers to set legally-binding nature restoration targets and will modernise how national parks and deer are managed.
The legislation is a key part of the Scottish Government’s Strategic Framework for Biodiversity and complements the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and related delivery plans.
Experts have warned that a decline in biodiversity will make the climate crisis worse while a changing climate will increase the rate of biodiversity loss. The Bill proposes actions to tackle the twin crises of climate change and nature loss with measures to protect biodiversity and reduce harmful carbon emissions.
It will build on the high ambitions set out in the Biodiversity Strategy and Delivery Plan, which includes over 100 actions to tackle the nature crisis.
If passed by Parliament in due course, the Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill would:
- place a duty on Scottish Ministers to set legally-binding targets for nature restoration
- create a power to allow for future amendments to Environmental Impact Assessment legislation and the 1994 Habitats Regulations, to ensure that they remain fit for purpose over time and to flexibly adapt to future requirements, while ensuring that the legislative frameworks continue to effectively underpin environmental protection and assessment processes in Scotland.
- modernise the aims of National Parks and powers of National Park Authorities
- reform the way in which deer are managed through the implementation of many of the recommendations made by the Deer Working Group, through repealing the licensing of venison dealing, and by amending NatureScot’s powers of intervention.