Webinar – Harnessing BNG to amplify urban flood risk management

Flooding is the number one natural hazard in the UK (CCC, 2021). The risks and associated costs of flooding are growing due to climate change, but the planning system in England has not yet adapted accordingly. The Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) legislation came into effect in England from February 2024 and represents a significant shift in planning regulations. The  policy report from the London School of Economics and the Grantham Institute, published in November 2024 as part of the NATURANCE project, Harnessing England’s Biodiversity Net Gain legislation to amplify urban flood risk management, looked at the potential of BNG for flood risk management.

In this webinar the report’s co-author Jonathan Kassian and climate change expert professor Swenja Surminski, will presented the case for integrating BNG and natural flood management made in the report. This includes BNG’s potential to enhance urban resilience and the integration of BNG funding with local authorities’ natural flood management projects.

The Institution of Environmental Sciences, Environmental Policy Implementation Community (EPIC), and the Foundation for Water Research (FWR) jointly organized the event.