In an era of heightened awareness of climate and biodiversity crises, the question of how we make effective and sustainable land use choices has become central to political and economic discourse. As we begin to understand and see the importance of biodiversity net gain (BNG) in infrastructure and development projects, what if we expanded this requirement across all forms of land use? From agriculture to forestry, energy production to mineral extraction, extending BNG offers an opportunity to address environmental degradation while helping catalyse a thriving nature-based economy.
This is about reimagining the value of positively impacting the landscape, making it an investable asset class, and building an economic model that drives both prosperity and sustainability. Extending BNG to all land use sectors is the next logical step in creating a profitable natural capital market that rewards businesses, benefits society, and protects our environment. It also means that those who impact the environment must contribute to its restoration — making the polluter pays principle a practical reality.
Market Solutions, and the Natural World
This is not a call for bureaucracy or heavy-handed state intervention – I think the public sector needs to be significantly smaller. Instead, it is about utilising market forces to achieve conservation goals in a manner that aligns with the principles of economic freedom and individual responsibility and consequences. Just as we price carbon to reflect its environmental cost, extending BNG ensures that those who impact biodiversity must also contribute to enhancing it. This is the “polluter pays” principle at work—those who degrade the environment bear the responsibility of funding its restoration and improvement, thus internalising the real costs of environmental damage.
Creating an Investable Asset Class: The Natural Capital Opportunity
At the core of the argument for extending BNG rules is the recognition that natural capital can be—and must be—a real asset class. The generally accepted approach to land use fails to recognise the potential financial value of conservation efforts. By incorporating BNG across all sectors, we can begin to generate a diverse portfolio of high-quality biodiversity projects, with each contributing to ecosystem health, providing societal benefits, and offering financial returns.
Take agriculture, for instance. For too long, farmers have been incentivised to maximise yields at the expense of soil health, biodiversity, and natural processes. By extending BNG requirements to agriculture, we could incentivise farmers to adopt regenerative practices that enhance biodiversity while also improving yields over the long term. The outcome? A healthier agricultural landscape that provides not only food but also ecological services—carbon sequestration, soil regeneration, and pollination—that can be monetised. The very best farmers are operating ecologically diverse landscapes in this exact way and should benefit more than they already do as a result.
Forestry, energy, and infrastructure sectors can similarly benefit from extended BNG rules. With the right incentives, biodiversity credits could become a valued commodity—bought and sold in the same way as carbon credits. The “polluter pays” principle applies here too: those who extract resources or develop land must ensure that they invest in restoring and enhancing biodiversity. The potential to establish a wider market for these credits creates opportunities for businesses to benefit from conservation in a way that makes financial sense. Instead of treating conservation as a cost, it becomes a revenue-generating activity—a core business strategy that aligns profit with positive environmental and social impact.
Unlocking Institutional Investment
For the natural capital market to truly thrive, it must become attractive to institutional investors. We have seen how carbon markets have evolved from niche interest to increasingly mainstream investment opportunities, driven by the emergence of robust standards, high-quality projects, and the potential for predictable returns. Extending BNG across all forms of land use can play a similar role for biodiversity.
Institutional investors are interested in scale, diversity, and long-term security. By extending BNG requirements, we create the conditions necessary to build portfolios of high-quality natural capital projects that offer stability and resilience. The benefits are twofold: investors gain access to a new asset class with strong potential for returns, and landowners—farmers, estate managers, developers—are given the opportunity to diversify income streams beyond their traditional business models.
Moreover, this would ensure that those who degrade the environment take financial responsibility for offsetting that damage. This creates a predictable flow of investment into biodiversity projects, further securing returns for institutional investors. Our commitment at Oxygen Conservation to build the UK’s leading natural capital portfolio by 2027 is a direct response to this need.
We see extending BNG as an incredible opportunity—not only for the impact on biodiversity but for the signal it sends to the market that natural capital is a valuable, investable resource.
Levelling Up Rural Communities
Conservation should not be a luxury enjoyed only by a few; it must be integrated into the very fabric of our economy, creating opportunities for communities that have, for too long, been left behind. Extending BNG offers a pathway for rural areas to thrive—not through oppressive (and often resented) subsidies or handouts, but through market mechanisms that reward positive impact whilst holding those who degrade the environment accountable.
Consider the benefits to rural communities when farmers and landowners are incentivised to enhance biodiversity on their land. Payments for ecosystem services, the sale of biodiversity credits, and opportunities for sustainable tourism can all contribute to economic growth, creating jobs and supporting livelihoods.
This is the essence of “levelling up” — using natural capital to create meaningful economic opportunities in rural areas, thereby ensuring that everyone benefits from the transition to a greener economy, funded not by the taxpayer but by those who owe a debt to the natural world that should be collected – and with interest.
By extending BNG requirements, we can create opportunities for rural entrepreneurs to thrive, for long-forgotten communities to prosper, and for a new generation to see conservation not as a sacrifice, but as a source of pride and profit.
Overcoming the Challenges
Admittedly, extending BNG rules across all forms of land use will not be without challenges – I’m sure it will be incredibly unpopular, but the positive changes often are. Increased compliance costs, the need for new skills and knowledge, and the complexity of monitoring biodiversity gains will pose hurdles – yet these challenges are not insurmountable. Many of the technical challenges can be solved by some of the incredible new environmental tech startups entering the space.
Industries that impact biodiversity must take on the financial responsibility for enhancing it, ensuring that the cost of compliance is proportionate to the level of environmental impact. This shouldn’t be offensive to anyone, quite the contrast, the absence of the polluter pays principle in practice should be abhorrent. This approach not only helps balance economic costs but also incentivises businesses to innovate and find more efficient ways to meet BNG goals.
Just as carbon markets continue to evolve, so too can biodiversity markets, driven by innovation, technology, and simpler but more effective regulation. Government policy can play a role by reducing its reach and impact – allowing private market mechanisms to clear up the mess it has at least in part caused.
Extending BNG—A Conservative Vision for Growth
Extending biodiversity net gain rules across all forms of land use is an opportunity to build a vibrant natural capital market that benefits businesses, investors, and communities alike.
The principle of the polluter pays is central to this vision. By ensuring that those who impact the environment are responsible for enhancing it, we create a more equitable framework for growth—one that recognises the true value of our natural assets. Extending BNG requirements makes biodiversity a shared responsibility, a collective investment, and a powerful economic opportunity.
By recognising the value of our natural environment, we can transform conservation from a cost to a cornerstone of our economic model. But simply holding polluters accountable is not enough. If we are to fully leverage the potential of conservation, we must also reward those who actively protect and enhance our natural capital. This is where the Protector Profits Principleemerges—a principle that embraces economic incentives to align the prosperity of businesses, landowners, and investors with the health of our ecosystems. By creating opportunities for individuals and companies to profit from conservation, we can bring the forces of the market to bear on restoring and preserving our environment.
Extending BNG requirements is not merely about preservation; it is about creating a future where nature and prosperity go hand in hand. The market for natural capital is ready to be built. It requires leadership, effort, and a vision that goes beyond short-term challenges to embrace the long-term opportunities of a nature-positive economy.
This is not just about making the market for biodiversity—it’s about making the market for our future in a way that honours both the spirit of enterprise and the imperative of positive environmental and social impact. To truly succeed, we must not only hold polluters accountable but also empower the protectors to profit from their efforts.