Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes to benefit from Local Nature Recovery Strategy

In the UK, around 41% of our wildlife species have declined in recent decades and a quarter of UK mammals face extinction, due to pressures like climate change, pests and diseases, habitat loss, development and over-use of resources or pollution. While nature provides a myriad of benefits such as better human health and wellbeing, flood management, and carbon sequestration, only 13% of Buckinghamshire and 8% of Milton Keynes is covered with high quality natural habitats and far less lies in areas with some level of protection.

The 48 individual local authorities are set to benefit from a combined £14 million funding pot enabling them to work with their local communities to develop a tailored Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) for their area.

LNRSs were first introduced in the Environment Act 2021. This new initiative will support efforts to:

• recover nature across England
• help deliver national environment targets
• support the delivery of biodiversity net gain
• help planning authorities incorporate nature recovery objectives

Buckinghamshire was also part of a pilot LNRS process in 2020-2021 to help determine the final guidance for the LNRS. Earlier this year, the Government published regulations and guidance setting out the process that each responsible authority must follow and what each strategy should include.

With the best ways to support nature recovery depending on local geography, the Local Nature Recovery Strategy process will work closely with communities and other stakeholders to map out how and where to recover nature and identify priorities that also achieve wider benefits. When put together they will be a key way of meeting our England-wide nature targets. The LNRS process for Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes will take place over the next 12-18 months and will use lessons learned from the pilot.

Buckinghamshire Council has been designated the Responsible Authority (RA) – or the local authority responsible for producing the strategy for Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes - with Milton Keynes City Council and Natural England serving as key supporting authorities. The Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes Natural Environment Partnership (NEP), the area’s successful Local Nature Partnership, which was also involved with the pilot work, will be leading the strategy creation process. LNRSs will not mandate any changes to local landowners. To learn more about the LNRS, attend an introductory webinar or learn more at: https://bucksmknep.co.uk/nature-strategy/overview

Gareth Williams, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment, said:

“It’s fantastic news that the Government has nominated Buckinghamshire as one of the new LNRS areas. The NEP has already started work on our LNRS, including organising introductory webinars to provide a range of stakeholders in Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes with information on the LNRS and how they can get involved in the process.

“Creating our LNRS is an important piece of work which sits alongside key priorities for the council of tackling climate change and improving the environment. This ties in with our Bucks Climate Challenge, which involves us working with local communities to tackle the impact of climate change in Buckinghamshire. We’re aiming for net zero carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest.”

More information on the Bucks Climate Challenge can be found at: www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/campaign/bucks-climate-challenge