Biodiversity offsetting and net positive design

Abstract

Biodiversity offsetting is used in both urban development and regional resource consent processes to compensate for unavoidable environmental impacts. Using North American, Australian and New Zealand examples, the limitations, opportunities and contradictions of the conventional approach in biodiversity offsetting schemes relevant to the built urban environment were reviewed. It was found that there is not adequate accounting for incremental and cumulative effects over time and space, especially given ecological uncertainty. Benchmarking against current conditions has sanctioned a gradual loss of ecological carrying capacity and biodiversity. Net biodiversity gains are possible, but this will require shifts in frameworks for assessing both buildings and biodiversity offsets towards net positive planning and design.