The loan has enabled environmental consultancy Nature Impact to purchase 70 acres of land in Rolvenden, Kent and another 52 acres in Wadhurst, East Sussex – two sites that offer huge potential to unlock underutilised and degraded farmland.

The projects will see the restoration and creation of a wide range of habitats, including native wildflower meadows, traditional orchards, woodland, scrub, ponds, wetlands and hedgerows. The goal is to restore biodiversity in a way that harmonises with the unique characteristics of the landscape, sequesters carbon, and unlocks a wealth of invaluable ecosystem services to benefit the local community.

What is biodiversity net gain?

The UK government introduced the biodiversity net gain (BNG) scheme in February 2024, placing a legal requirement on residential, commercial and infrastructure developers to demonstrate a minimum net gain of 10% of biodiversity as a condition of planning permission. This different approach to development channels focus into nature conservation, biodiversity protection, and ensuring that habitats for wildlife are left in a measurably better state than they were beforehand.

For the purposes of BNG, the biodiversity value of a piece of land is measured in standardised biodiversity units. Typically, a habitat will contain a number of biodiversity units, depending on its size, quality, location and type.

If a biodiversity net gain cannot be achieved on site, developers can make gains through off-site BNG units. This is where Nature Impact offers its service as it estimates that 50% of BNG units will need to be purchased off-site.

Laying sustainable foundations

Founded in 2023, Nature Impact’s mission is to be a leading natural capital developer in the UK, with a focus on providing off-site BNG units for London and the Southeast. By being early leaders in this space, Nature Impact are working to develop the market for investable, high-integrity natural capital projects.

Through acquiring degraded, unproductive farmland, various methods can be utilised to restore biodiversity and sequester carbon. The creation of wetlands provides habitats for species at risk of extinction, whilst hedgerows supply resources for mammals, birds, and insect species. These techniques also unlock a host of other benefits such as critical flood management to local communities. Nature Impact looks to do this initially via direct land ownership, with ambition to scale as the ecosystem-service market develops.  

Alongside the ecological significance of these projects, Nature Impact will also use these properties to provide additional green space and access for local communities, with engagement, access and connection key to their business model.  

“Biodiversity Net Gain has the potential to drive huge growth in UK nature markets – something we desperately need right now as we grapple with the shocking decline in our nation’s biodiversity,” explains Tom Nelson, co-founder of Nature Impact.

“We are incredibly grateful to the team at Triodos for developing an innovative lending model that will enable us to transform the sites in Rolvenden and Wadhurst, and create havens for wildlife. Taking a nature-first approach, we ultimately want to establish hundreds of groundbreaking biodiversity projects across the country. We believe this loan could represent a tipping point for nature finance, and we couldn’t be more excited to be part of this movement.”

Poor in biodiversity, rich in opportunity

Biodiversity underpins much of what we need to survive, from food and clean water to our mental health and wellbeing, not to mention our economy too, with over 50% of global GDP directly dependent on nature. Therefore, it’s deeply concerning that the UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, despite being equipped to fight biodiversity loss and climate change.

“Triodos has been advocating for the critical role of the financial system in reversing biodiversity loss for more than four decades, and we are proud of our heritage as a frontrunner in financing nature-based solutions,” comments Laura Rumph, senior relationship manager for nature, food and resource at Triodos Bank UK.

"Innovative business models have the potential to supercharge nature restoration, and we hope this project will boost confidence in biodiversity net gain among investors. We are delighted to have found a partner in Nature Impact who are totally aligned with our vision and mission, and we are excited to work with them to bring about lasting change".

Examples of how different landscapes across the UK can be enhanced through both on and off-site projects

Low grade agricultural land: agricultural land use accounts for 70% of the total area of the UK. Within this, field margins and wildflower strips can be created, as well as wetlands and ponds.

Urban landscapes: community parks can enhance local biodiversity, urban drainage systems such as wetlands and swales can be utilised for stormwater management, whilst green roofs and living walls can create nesting spaces for wildlife alongside increasing plant migration into built up areas.

Coastal developments: salt marsh implementation can help to mitigate the impact of flooding whilst providing habitats for marine species. Furthermore, marshes have an incredible ability to sequester carbon for decades in the underlying soil – often referred to as ‘blue carbon’.

“Amidst our recent lending target announcement for nature-based solutions," continues Laura "our aims encompass conservation, restoration, and sustainable management of both natural and semi-natural ecosystems, alongside establishing new ecosystems in human modified environments such as urban areas.

Working with Nature Impact presents a unique opportunity to kickstart our journey towards creating more connected spaces for nature and communities".

Nature based solutions lending target

In November 2024 Triodos Bank announced its commitment to provide at least EUR 500 million in investments, loans and contributions to the nature-based solutions sector by the end of 2030 as part of its biodiversity targets. Click here to read further.