Ruth Davis: nature, trade and partnership – reflections from China
Ruth Davis shares her reflections from her recent visit to China with the Defra Secretary of State, Emma Reynolds. Read this post to find out more.
Laying the groundwork for the Nature Restoration Fund
Posted by:
Environment blog team, Posted on:
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Categories:
30by30, Environmental Improvement Plan, Green finance, Nature, Planning
The Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) is a landmark reform to the way housing and infrastructure developers meet their environmental responsibilities. Yesterday, 18 June 2026, two sets of secondary legislation were laid before Parliament. This is an important step towards putting the fund into practice, …
Celebrating the launch of our first National River Walk – join our webinars on how to apply to deliver our next four river walks
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Environment blog team, Posted on:
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Categories:
Access and engagement, National River Walks, Nature
Rivers are at the heart of many of our towns, cities and countryside landscapes. They shape the places we live, support wildlife, and offer people somewhere to walk, wheel, cycle, volunteer, spend time with family, and connect with nature close to home. …
Biodiversity Net Gain for NSIPs: gain statements laid and guidance published
We have reached a significant milestone in implementing Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs). Earlier this week the final biodiversity gain statements were formally laid in Parliament and are now available on GOV.UK. These statements are central to applying BNG to the NSIP regime and accompany the two statutory instruments in …
Unlocking England's nature markets: a further step forward for investment in the environment
I'm Will Lockhart, Deputy Director for Nature Markets and Investment at Defra. In March, I wrote about how we're encouraging more private investment in nature recovery in England – including making it easier for businesses to pay for the benefits nature provides, and launching new, world-leading nature investment …
The Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund: Bringing even more buzz to Protected Landscapes
Posted by:
Mary-Ann Ochota, Posted on:
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Categories:
National Parks, Nature, Protected Landscapes, Wildlife
The new Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund (WRHF) is now live. It’s a new pot of money - £30 million - to create wildlife-rich habitats in National Parks and National Landscapes in England. Read this guest post by Chair of the Protected Landscapes Partnership Mary-Ann Ochota to find out more.
Investing in England's peatlands: introducing the Peatland Restoration Sector Capacity Grant
Peatlands have a vital role to play in helping us meet our net zero targets, but to restore them at the scale we need, we first need to grow the sector that does that work. That's what today's announcement is designed to do.
National Plant Health Week: protecting the green foundations of our lives
This week (11-17 May) is National Plant health week, and we are celebrating our plant health heroes. Read this post to find out the importance of this work and the networks which are key to plant health protection.
Digital waste tracking: What is it and why it matters
Posted by:
Environment blog team, Posted on:
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Categories:
Recycling, Resources and waste, Sustainability
Waste crime is not new, but in recent years it has escalated into a more sophisticated, costly and damaging criminal enterprise. It costs the economy an estimated £1 billion every year, blights our communities, and causes serious harm to the environment. From vast illegal dumps to fraudulent disposal records, …
Biodiversity Net Gain: what's changing and what it means for you
Over the past two years, Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) has started to change the way development and nature work together, and we’ve learned a huge amount from local authorities, developers and ecologists along the way. Last week, we published a set of updates that strengthen and streamline how BNG operates across the planning system. Read …