Tuesday 20 December 2022
Guidance has been produced by Agriculture, Countryside and Land Management Services to help islanders to protect and enhance biodiversity in their gardens and around their buildings.
In August 2021, the Development & Planning Authority announced that all applications for change of use of land to an alternative use, including extending domestic garden areas, must, from 1st September 2021, be accompanied by information demonstrating improved biodiversity following change of use. Therefore, this guidance should also make it easier for islanders to provide the necessary information on biodiversity enhancement when applying for a change of use of land to an alternative use.
The new guidance provides information on wildlife friendly gardens, biodiversity in the built environment and wildflower meadows.
The guidance is available at gov.gg/planning_building_permissions.
Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez, President of the Committee for the Environment & Infrastructure, said:
"We know many islanders are keen to make their gardens more wildlife friendly, but don't always know where to start. This guidance will help. This guidance gives examples of both a small garden and a big garden, showing that anyone with outdoor space, big or small, can make a difference.
"Our natural environment is important not just for its own sake, but also for our wellbeing and our economy and our resilience against the impacts of climate change. The more people that make wildlife-friendly changes to their gardens, the bigger the positive difference to the island as a whole."
Deputy Victoria Oliver, President of the Development & Planning Authority, said:
"As well as being helpful across the board, we know that this new guidance will be particularly helpful for those who need to show evidence of improved biodiversity as part of a planning application. We know that the requirement to demonstrate environmental benefit following a change of use is a new concept to a lot of people, so the new guidance is a really good place for them to start."
"As an Authority, we must continue to take environmental issues seriously. Having already included the Strategy for Nature as supplementary planning guidance, this is another good example of joint working between the DPA and E&I as we seek to preserve, protect and enhance what makes Guernsey a great place to live."
