In 2008 we published an updated biodiversity policy committing us to:
- complying with biodiversity legislation
- integrating biodiversity into our business procedures and operations
- protecting biodiversity and enhancing it where possible on all land we own
- communicating best practice in biodiversity
- working with external partners and stakeholders.
Over the last year we have continued to put our biodiversity policy into effect and made good progress against these commitments. We have:
- communicated the policy
- produced a supporting strategy
- developed a website for our people to use as a resource
- included biodiversity requirements in key business procedural documentation
- engaged with external stakeholders on biodiversity.
In 2009 we implemented new ways of managing biodiversity on a number of pilot operational sites. This year we secured regulatory funding to extend our pilot programme to a further 16 operational water sites over the next five years. We selected sites to recognise biodiversity opportunity and identify the potential impacts from day-to day-operations and their long-term development. The aim of this project is to embed proactive management of biodiversity into the management, operation and maintenance of our operational sites and make biodiversity considerations business as usual. This will help us deliver our biodiversity policy commitments and our duty as a public authority under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act.
We continue to work to protect and enhance biodiversity on our catchment land and during our capital investment projects.
We have continued to improve the condition of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) on our land. We have nearly 17,500 hectares of SSSIs, some of which are also designated as Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Special Areas of Conservation (SACs). Over the last year we have increased the proportion of SSSIs that are in ‘favourable’ or ‘unfavourable recovering’ status to 95%, from 93% in 2008/09. Much of this improvement has been delivered through our sustainable catchment management programme (SCaMP).
During the current 5-year investment period, we have a number of projects relating to raw water abstractions and wastewater treatment to improve Habitats Directive sites, SSSIs and biodiversity action plan habitats. We want to do more, so we continue to look for opportunities to protect species and habitats when delivering our capital investment programme, and enhance them where we can.