The protection of soils and soil health is rising up the political agenda with the announcement that a Soil Health Action Plan (SHAPE) for England will be published to restore the health of our soils, Lord Goldsmith announced in a speech in the House of Lords in September 2021. During a debate in the Report Stage of the Environment Bill, Lord Goldsmith confirmed that the plan will be a crucial part of the UK Government’s plan to halt the decline of species by 2030, as well as meeting long-term legally binding targets on biodiversity. The Government recognised that well-managed soils can lead to increased biodiversity, improved water quality and reduced carbon emissions. The Government is expected to consult on a draft outline of SHAPE in the spring of 2022.
It is in this context that IEMA is delighted to launch IEMA’s latest Impact Assessment Guidance, ‘A New Perspective on Land and Soil in Environmental Impact Assessment’. The aims of the new guidance are ambitious, but also necessary and timely. The authors and reviewers have sought to address multiple issues in a complex area of practice to better assess and manage the effects of development on land and soils. Importantly, the guidance seeks to move practice away from a narrow focus on quantifying and financially compensating impacts on agricultural land and advocates a new and wider approach to assessing the soil functions, ecosystem services and natural capital provided by land and soils. The guide highlights and reinforces the importance of soil functions and ecosystems services to wider systems including but not limited to carbon and climate, hydrology, food production, biodiversity and ecology.
Part position paper, part educational resource, and part methodological guidance, the combined result is a handbook on the current state of land and soil in Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and will be a valuable resource for practitioners seeking to assess and manage the effects of developments on land and soil.
I see this as the start, rather than the end, of IEMA’s guidance on this important area and look forward to further innovations in methodological development and seeing future examples of good practice from EIA members and EIA Quality Mark organisations. I am hopeful that this publication will act as a catalyst for the strengthening of the consideration and protection of our vital and finite land and soil resources through impact assessment and planning.
- If you are not an IEMA member but would like to access this publication, please complete the short form here to download the guide.
- If you are an IEMA member, please click here to log in and download the guide.
Subscribe
Subscribe to IEMA's newsletters to receive timely articles, expert opinions, event announcements, and much more, directly in your inbox.
Posted on 17th February 2022
Written by Rufus Howard
Latest Posts
-
Launch of new resource for conservation technology tools
- 11th July 2024 -
Natural Capital 101: Guide for Sustainability Professionals
- 9th July 2024 -
Analysing the manifesto pledges of Plaid Cymru, the Scottish National Party, and Reform UK
- 24th June 2024 -
Join the Sustainable Finance Network Steering Group
- 19th June 2024 -
Sustainable Finance Insight Journal Volume 2: Disclosure, Transparency and Reporting in Sustainable Finance
- 19th June 2024 -
Labour sets out plans for Great British Energy at manifesto launch
- 13th June 2024