Somerset Council has recently introduced a range of additional requirements for BNG. This page will help you complete the form. Please note that this page is designed to help guide your answers. Please always refer to their official documentation and seek to fully engage with the report requirements.

Step One: Please download their report

Step Two: Please fill in the name of your project and the date

Quality Assurance

Author name - XXX

Report Title - BNG Statement Template – Biodiversity Net Gain Statement

Reviewer name - XXX

Approver name - TBD

BNG Statement Revisions Record

Revision Number - 1

Date - today's date

Author - XXX

Approver(s) - TBD

Summary of changes from previous version - N/A

Competency Short Summary - Please use this service to get text to enter into the box.

Site summary

Site name and location - XXX

OS Grid reference - Please enter in your postcode in this website.

OPTION ONE: Write "Please see attached map document"

OPTION TWO: Add a screenshot of the map

If you are claiming

Metric Version Used - Please look at the metric sheet and use the date on the front page

ALTERNATIVE DATE -

PRE-DEVELOPMENT BASELINE ON-SITE BIODIVERSITY VALUE

Baseline On-site Area Habitat: 1.7303

Baseline On-site Hedgerow: 0.2365

Baseline On-site Watercourse: 0

UNAUTHORISED HABITAT DEGRADATION - See 4.18 in the attached draft Biodiversity Gain Plan

ON-SITE IRREPLACEABLE HABITAT - No.

MINIMISING BIODIVERSITY IMPACTS - Digital tools were used to help ensure that the mitigation hierarchy was followed. The site layout and design have, as far as possible, been shaped to avoid harm to existing biodiversity. There are no significant habitats (i.e. habitats rated above “moderate” distinctiveness) on site, and there are no designated or priority habitats on site. In addition, consideration was given to whether habitat features (e.g. mature trees, hedgerows, or higher-distinctiveness areas) could be retained in situ - though it is acknowledged that, for these less distinct habitats, it is not always possible to avoid negative impacts.

PROPOSED STRATEGY - Where impacts could not be completely avoided, measures have been taken to minimise them. This includes taking such steps as are appropriate during construction to reduce negative impacts to on-site habitats, and ensuring legal requirements to have regard for the sensitive timing of works to avoid disturbance to wildlife (e.g. avoiding bird nesting season for vegetation clearance) are respected as well as implementing pollution prevention controls to protect adjacent habitats (again as set out in legislation). These steps reduce the magnitude of any unavoidable damage. Any residual losses of habitat will be compensated through on-site habitat creation and enhancement to achieve a net gain. The compensatory measures are proportionate to the biodiversity losses and are designed to exceed mere replacement by providing an uplift in habitat value of at least the specified amount. The specific habitat creation proposals (detailed in the sections below and shown on the Habitat Plans) will more than offset the small areas of habitat unavoidably lost to the development.