A new report, ‘Research on Approaches to Measuring Biodiversity in Scotland,’ was published on September 21st. This research was conducted by IFB Partner, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), on behalf of the Scottish Government to outline a recommended approach for measuring biodiversity in Scotland, after considering results of interested parties’ engagement across multiple policy sectors and a review of a range of existing biodiversity metrics.
Being able to measure biodiversity is important for delivering Scottish Government policy objectives for natural capital, planning and development, conservation monitoring and agriculture. The needs of people engaged with and working in these policy areas vary in terms of expertise, resources, and the level of detail needed. But, the research found common priorities in being able to measure habitats, species, connectivity and ecosystem integrity.
Because of the range of needs across sectors, an approach to biodiversity measurement will need to be flexible and scalable to reflect the purposes, users and priority outcomes for the habitat, species or ecosystem for any given site. The report recommends approaching biodiversity measurement through a framework, or standard, that can integrate multiple metrics or tools to monitor biodiversity and provide consistent results, while allowing flexibility to tailor metrics and tools depending on different user or policy needs. This type of framework could incorporate new elements, but also carry forward elements from existing tools adapted for use in Scotland.