Highland Biodiversity Action 2021
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Highland Nature: Highland Biodiversity Action Plan 2021 - 2026 Draft 4: Text only. Quotes and hyperlinks will be included in the final document.! 1 Highland Nature Action Plan partners Ardtornish Estate Lochaber Biodiversity Group Association of Deer Management Groups Marine Conservation Society Assynt Field Club Ministry of Defence Beauly Fisheries Board Moray Firth Coastal Partnership Buglife Scotland National Trust for Scotland Bumblebee Conservation Trust Nature Friendly Farming Bunloit NatureScot Butterfly Conservation Scotland Plantlife Scotland Cairngorms National Park Authority Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Scotland Caithness Biodiversity Group Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks: Transmission CONFOR Scottish Environment Protection Agency Corrour Estate Scottish Forestry Cromarty Fishery Board Scottish Land and Estates Forest and Land Scotland Scottish Wildlife Trust Highland Biological Recording Group Spey Catchment Initiative Highland Council Spey Fisheries board Highland Environment Forum Trees for Life High Life Highland West Sutherland Fisheries Trust John Muir Trust Wester Ross Biosphere Lantra Woodland Trust Scotland Partner abbreviations used in the biodiversity action plan AE Ardtornish Estate ADMG Association of Deer Management Groups AFC Assynt Field Club BFB Beauly FIsheries Board BS Buglife Scotland BBCT Bumblebee Conservation Trust Bunloit Bunloit BCS Butterfly Conservation Scotland CB Caithness Biodiversity Group CNPA Cairngorms National Park Authority CONFOR CONFOR Corrour Corrour Estate CFB Cromarty Fishery Board 2 FLS Forest and Land Scotland HBRG Highland Biological Recording Group HC Highland Council HEF Highland Environment Forum HLH High Life Highland JMT John Muir Trust Lantra Lantra LBG Lochaber Biodiversity Group MCS Marine Conservation Society MOD Ministry of Defence MFCP Moray Firth Coastal Partnership NS NatureScot NTS National Trust for Scotland NFF Nature Friendly Farming Plantlife Plantlife Scotland RSPB Royal Society for the Protection of Birds SSE Scottish & Southern Electricity SEPA Scottish Environment Protection Agency SF Scottish Forestry SLE Scottish Land and Estates SSEN Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks: Transmission Spey CI Spey Catchment Initiative SFB Spey Fisheries Board TfL Trees for Life WSFT West Sutherland Fisheries Trust WRB Wester Ross Biosphere WTS Woodland Trust Scotland 3 Introduction The fact that we have a "broken relationship with nature#$is becoming increasingly accepted, extending beyond environmental organisations to national and international government strategies. Climate change and Covid-19 both highlight the close interaction that exists between human behaviour, the natural environment and ultimately our own health and survival. Put simply, all that we do has an impact on nature. It is a responsibility that we have to take seriously. Translating this knowledge into practical action is a different challenge, and this is where the Highland Biodiversity Action Plan can make an important contribution. There are many examples of positive work for nature, and these have been collated in ‘Highland Nature Action 2015 – 2020’. It is a comprehensive, but inevitably, not exhaustive, document, and additional examples are always welcomed. The Cairngorms National Park has its own biodiversity action plan "Cairngorms Nature#. There is much shared ground in the aspirations of both action plans. 1.1 Guiding Lights Highland Nature, a Highland Biodiversity Action Plan for 2021 - 2026, is the fourth plan to be written since 2006. The focus of the plan is on the actions that can be delivered by partners in the Highlands. These actions reflect national and international targets and the internationally supported ‘Edinburgh Declaration’ (2020) which states: ‘We note the need to develop effective policy, governance and financing solutions at all levels of government and to ensure vertical integration across national, subnational, city and local levels to effect transformative change. These should address both the direct and indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, and integrate all dimensions of sustainable development (environmental, economic, cultural and social).’ Edinburgh Declaration partners call on parties in the UN post-2020 global biodiversity framework, who will be meeting in Kunming, China in 2021, to: ‘Take strong and bold actions to bring about transformative change, as outlined in the IPBES global assessment report, in order to halt biodiversity loss.’ In December 2020 the Scottish Government published ‘Scottish Biodiversity Strategy Post-2020: A Statement of Intent’ and their response to the Werrity Report on grouse moor management, in which they state that they ‘intend to bring forward the legislation to license grouse moor management during the next parliamentary term.’ The Statement of Intent for the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy post-2020 highlights the ambition to have increased ‘the area protected for nature in Scotland to at least 30% of our land area by 2030’ and that they have ‘ambitious new proposals to secure positive effects for biodiversity through development, through our work on National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4)’. Marine protection measures include Scottish Government contribution to, and adoption of, of the new North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy, which will result in Scotland implementing actions to achieve a clean, healthy and biologically diverse North-East Atlantic. There will be a second review of Scotland’s National Marine Plan in 2021. The UN Convention on Biodiversity 2050 target of ‘Living in Harmony with Nature’ remains central to international thinking. Its aim is that: ‘By 2050, biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored and wisely used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people.’ The five main drivers for biodiversity loss highlighted by the IPBES "Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services#$(2019) referred to above are: 1. Land-use change 2. Climate change 3. Pollution 4. Natural resource use and exploitation 5. Invasive species All of which are of fundamental importance to considering Highland biodiversity and the actions that we need to take to protect and enhance it. 4 The Scottish Biodiversity Strategy (2013) highlighted Six Big Steps for Nature, identifying areas in which action should be undertaken. These are: 1. Ecosystem restoration 2. Investment in natural capital 3. Quality greenspace for health and education benefits 4. Conserving wildlife 5. Sustainable management of land and freshwater 6. Sustainable management of marine and coastal ecosystems The Aichi Targets (2010 ) similarly focussed on action that should be undertaken by 2020. These twenty targets were ambitious, and have not yet been met, but they still remain central to the task. The targets are intended to meet 5 strategic goals: A. Address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity across government and society B. Reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity and promote sustainable use C. Improve the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity D. Enhance the benefits to all from biodiversity and ecosystem services E. Enhance implementation through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building By way of example, the first three targets are: Target 1: By 2020, at the latest, people are aware of the values of biodiversity and the steps they can take to conserve and use it sustainably. Target 2: By 2020, at the latest, biodiversity values have been integrated into national and local development and poverty reduction strategies and planning processes and are being incorporated into national accounting, as appropriate, and reporting systems. Target 3: By 2020, at the latest, incentives, including subsidies, harmful to biodiversity are eliminated, phased out or reformed in order to minimise or avoid negative impacts, and positive incentives for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity are developed and applied, consistent and in harmony with the Convention and other relevant international obligations, taking into account national socio economic conditions. Highland Adapts The link between biodiversity and climate change underpins much of this document, but the Highland response to climate change is presented more directly in "Highland Adapts#, an approach which will be furthered by Highland Community Planning Partners : Highland Council, NatureScot, NHS Highland, Highland and Islands Enterprise, Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Partners in Highland Adapts recognise the need: 1. For a Highland-wide climate risk assessment which will highlight vulnerable species, habitats and landscapes and will help partners identify actions to protect the environment. 2. To increase understanding and build the business case for nature-based adaptation actions, such as natural flood risk management, that will support adaptation in the Highlands. There are many other policies and strategies that influence how we work with the landscape and nature of the Highlands. The list below is not exhaustive, but provides an indication of current policies and nature protection legislation that interconnects with action on the ground. 5 1.2 Policies and plans with a biodiversity element Designated Sites Management of these sites is regulated and monitored by NatureScot. • Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), intended to protect a representative series of the best