‘A thriving natural environment, providing for a healthier and wealthier North East’
The North East England Nature Partnership
We have responsibility for developing a shared strategic vision for the natural environment of North East England. Our work aims for the significant connections the natural environment has to our present and future health, wellbeing, learning and economic successes to be understood and accounted for by all.
Importantly, we are a broad partnership, representing many sectors from NGOs, business, Public Health England to Local Authorities demonstrating that through collaboration, and in understanding the value of the natural environment to every aspect of our lives, everyone can contribute to achieving Environmental Growth and reverse the decline that is currently happening to our wildlife and their habitats.
Achieving Environmental Growth
The North East England Nature Partnership launched a 20-year Vision for Environmental Growth, setting out opportunities to deliver improvements to the natural environment that are integrated with the enhancement of local communities and support economic success. The vision reinforces that we must work with other sectors to ensure the many benefits living in a nature rich environment brings and we have endeavoured to achieve this through our work themes.
Achieving Environmental Growth and investing in our natural capital is important because we have lost over half of our wildlife since the 1970’s. In ecological terms, UK biodiversity, the variety and abundance of species, has declined by 53% since the 1970s’. More than half of UK species have suffered declines in recent years and 15% are at risk of vanishing (State of Nature Report, Sept 2016). This decline is a worldwide problem as The Living Planet Report estimates that the world’s wildlife populations had halved over the last 40 years.
Why does this matter? Biodiversity matters because the presence of absence of species is an indicator of ecosystem health, these ecosystems provide services from nature such as; clean air, water, soil, climate regulation, pollination and so on and are the very things on which human health depends. Therefore, we should view biodiversity or the presence of species as an indicator of success and our reward for maintaining and enhancing natural, green and blue environments.
According to the Convention on Biological Diversity: ‘Biological diversity means the variability among living organisms from all sources, including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.’
Government and Nature Partnerships
In 2011, the UK government made a commitment through the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Natural Environment White Paper, The Natural Choice: Securing the value of nature, to support the creation of Local Nature Partnerships. Their purpose is to work strategically to ensure the value and function of nature is considered in local decision making and develop a environmental strategy locally.
Various government initiatives such as the Clean Growth Strategy and Defra 25 year plan now focus on protecting and enhancing the natural environment by encouraging:
Development, farming and economic activities to create a net gain in biodiversity
Reduction in emissions through greener business practices and efficient resource use
Businesses to account for their use and impact on natural capital by Natural Capital Accounting
“This Government is determined to leave our natural environment in a better condition than we found it. Clean growth is not an option, but a duty we owe to the next generation, and economic growth has to go hand-in-hand with greater protection for our forests and beaches, clean air and places of outstanding natural beauty.”
Theresa May, Prime Minster, Clean Growth Strategy, Foreward
Working with others
Public bodies have a statutory duty to take account of conservation of biodiversity/ ecologically coherent planning, retaining the protection and improvement of the natural environment as core objectives of the planning system. As such public bodies should engage with Nature Partnerships in the development of strategies and plans in much the same way they would with Local Enterprise Partnerships.
In the White Paper, Defra encourage Local Enterprise Partnerships and Local Nature Partnerships to work together to forge strong links that capture the value of nature and contribute to the green economy and in our opinion in greening the economy too.
25 Year Plan summary of targets
Clean air
Clean and plentiful water
Thriving plants and wildlife
Reducing the risks of harm from environmental hazard
Using resources from nature more sustainably and efficiently
Enhancing beauty, heritage and engagement with the natural environment
Mitigating and adapting to climate change
Minimising waste
Managing exposure to chemicals
Enhancing biosecurity
