The importance of Strategic Significance
'Strategic significance’ is an important part of the Biodiversity Metric scoring approach. The ‘strategic significance’ score is a landscape scale factor, which gives additional unit value to habitats that are located in preferred locations for biodiversity and other environmental objectives.
Whether you are a developer looking to build on land, or a landowner looking to create a Habitat Bank, it is important to find out whether the land you are interested in has a 'strategic significance' uplift element, and then correctly apply that uplift in the Biodiversity Metric.
Areas of 'strategic significance' are set locally in the Local Nature Strategy (LNRS).
Once you have reviewed the habitat map associated with the LNRS, you should then consult the statutory Biodiversity Metric user guide. Table 7 within the guide explains how to apply the 'high' or 'low' strategic significance within the metric.
The category of 'Medium' should never be used.
Implications for developers
In simple terms, if the land on which you intend to build on is within an area of strategic significance, then it is possible you will have to provide a greater degree of BNG than would otherwise be the case. This is because you are at greater risk of higher biodiversity losses as a consequence of the development. This does not mean you must always avoid land in areas of strategic significance, though ecologically and financially it may be better to identify development land away from areas of strategic significance.
If you are a developer and are seeking to provide off-site BNG, then locating such off-site BNG within an area of strategic significance could be financially beneficial, provided the habitat you create is consistent with the LNRS. This is because your habitat creation would score higher in the BNG Metric, and therefore you would more easily meet the minimum 10% BNG you must achieve.
Implications for landowners
If you are a large land holder, such as a farmer, and are interested in setting up a habitat bank, then being in an area of strategic significance (i.e. as identified in the LNRS) could be financially beneficial to you because there is the potential to create more BNG units for sale for each parcel of habitat you create. However, the habitat you create would have to be consistent with the habitat desired in the LNRS.
Important caveat
The guidance on this webpage is intended to be a helpful starting point for understanding Strategic Significance and BNG, and how it is to be applied locally. However, it is not a substitute for, and should not be relied on as an alternative to, the full national guidance and legislative requirements which must be adhered to. If there is any conflict between any of the advice on this page and national guidance or legislation, then such national guidance or legislation prevails.