Measuring biodiversity: research into approaches

Alliance Bioversity International and International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (Alliance BICIAT)

Agriculture - country, company or project level

Species, varieties, landscape complexity and functional diversity

Composite index to evaluate agriculture at country, company or project levels. 22 indicator types are identified covering consumption, production and conservation (3 pillars) over status, action and commitment (3 categories). Users identify appropriate data for each indicator.

Wallacea Trust

Assessment of biodiversity uplift projects, requires a basket of at least 5 metrics relevant to the site context:

• reflect the conservation objectives for the ecoregion and habitats included in the submitted site,
  
• include at least one habitat or floral composition metric (for terrestrial sites),
  
• include metrics covering all ecosystem services likely to be affected by the proposed management plan (such as air quality, water quality, soil quality, pollination value),
  
• include a minimum of five metrics for any project. (For some projects more than the minimum will be required to encompass all conservation objectives and the ecosystem services likely to be impacted),
  
• not include carbon sequestration

PRé, CREM and ASN Bank

Life Cycle Analysis
Uses ReCiPe
Species richness used for biodiversity
Damage to diversity described as the fraction of species lost in comparison with undisturbed area.

Potentially Disappeared Fraction (PDF) per unit area per year is used to express the area (m2) where all biodiversity is lost per year due to impacts. Results can be expressed in biodiversity loss per unit of revenue or investment (e.g. m2 loss per €)

Plansup and Wageningen Environmental Research

Production chain impacts
Mean species abundance * habitat area

Mean Species Abundance scores are interacted with habitat area to determine the area that would be equivalent to complete loss of biodiversity (i.e. no natural habitat vs pristine habitat).

University of Cambridge

Agriculture commodity impacts
Area * biodiversity loss * impact
Based on MSA

Measures the impact of production of agricultural commodities allowing comparison of different sourcing options (intensity and location)

Natural History Museum

Biodiversity monitoring and scenario analysis

Combines information on species (birds, mammals, plants, fungi and insects) abundance in undisturbed and disturbed sites with measures of human pressures (land use change and intensification, human population growth and landscape simplification) to estimate the percentage of the original ecological community still intact. The BII is averaged across areas (countries, regions or global) to give the remaining biodiversity across that area.

IUCN

Habitat restoration (quarries)
Extent * condition * significance

Combined assessment of land holdings of mining company (whether actively exploited or not)

UNEP-WCMC, Conservational International and Fauna & Flora International

Development/net gain
Habitat (area) or species (population) impact relative to undisturbed state depending on biodiversity focus -

Tool to measure and monitor the impact of company activity on biodiversity. Three stage approach: 1) screen for sites of biodiversity significance; 2) common framework (pressure - state - response) for assessment of site level indicators; 3) aggregate site level indicators to business unit and corporate levels

Defra and Natural England

Development/net gain
Extent * condition * distinctiveness * strategic significance

Tool to identify the biodiversity impacts of development projects and calculate the net gain outcomes from mitigating actions including habitat creation or enhancement

Global Nature Fund, Lake Constance Foundation, Agentur AUF! (Germany), the Fundación Global Nature (Spain), Solagro and agoodforgood (France), and Instituto Superior Técnico (Portugal)

Agricultural management
25 habitats, species and management indicators

Biodiversity impact evaluation of farms based on a range of indicators covering different economic, environmental and social factors. Aimed at use by food companies and retailers to monitor supplier performance. Biodiversity focus is the protection of insects and insect responsible sourcing

Arcadis

Impact of business site operations
Extent * condition * significance

Tool designed to allow companies to evaluate biodiversity impacts of on site operations

Global Nature Fund, Lake Constance Foundation, Agentur AUF! (Germany), the Fundación Global Nature (Spain), Solagro and agoodforgood (France), and Instituto Superior Técnico (Portugal)

Agricultural management
78 biodiversity indicators

Biodiversity assessment at farm level based on 23 indicators of natural and semi-natural habitats and ecological structures; 49 indicators of agricultural practices; and 7 indicators of social issues. Biodiversity focus is the protection of insects

See ReCiPe

Life Cycle Analysis
Species loss due to different land use

Iceberg Data Lab

Life Cycle Analysis
Mean species abundance – measure relative to undisturbed state

Biodiversity assessment at corporate level to identify the impacts of business activities in terms of pressures applied in mean species abundance calculation

Natural Capital Finance Alliance

Biodiversity module focuses on agriculture and mining
Recommends combination of Mean Species Abundance and STAR
Screening using IBAT

Biodiversity impact assessment for agricultural and mining sectors

CDC Biodiversité

Production chain impacts
Mean species abundance * habitat area

Biodiversity assessment at corporate level to identify the impacts of business activities in terms of pressures applied in mean species abundance calculation

Impact Institute

Mean species abundance * habitat area
Potentially Disappeared Fraction * m2 (ecosystem intactness per unit area)

Biodiversity impacts assessment as part of a wider impact assessment of investment portfolios also including social and human capitals. Impacts can also be monetised

UNEP-WCMC, IUCN, BirdLife International, Conservation International

Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA)
Species Threat Abatement and Restoration metric (STAR)

Assessment of biodiversity related opportunities and risks for business

Institute of Life

Biodiversity Pressure Index combining waste, water, energy, land use (MSA-based) and GHG

Assessment of business impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services using calculation of the Biodiversity Pressure Index (BPI). This is a composite index comprising pressures including: waster generation, water use, energy use, land use, GHG emissions

CreditNature

Outcomes focussed assessment of ecosystem integrity intended to inform sealable nature tokens

Norwegian Environment Agency

Biodiversity monitoring

Composite index of 260 indicators representing species, groups of species and indirect biodiversity over 7 terrestrial and marine ecosystems. For each species a value between 0 (disappeared) and 1 (little affect), these are then weighted based on expert judgement of their importance to the condition of biodiversity. Indicator values are based on either monitoring, modelling or expert judgement. Underlying indicator indices can be explored at species, ecosystem or thematic level. Regional level results are also displayed.

I-Care & Consult and Sayari

LCA
Potentially Disappeared Fraction of species (PDF)

Incorporates MEA drivers of biodiversity impact (habitat change, pollution, climate change, overexploitation and invasive alien species) into LCA of product impact

RIVM

LCA
Potentially Disappeared Fraction of species (PDF)

Potentially Disappeared Fraction (PDF) per unit area per year is used to express the area (m2) where all biodiversity is lost per year due to impacts.

UNEP-WCMC, IUCN, BirdLife International, Conservation International

Species conservation status * proportion of species range in area of interest

Assessment of biodiversity related opportunities and risks for business

SSE Networks

Adaptation of Biodiversity Metric 3.1

Adapted Biodiversity Metric for energy infrastructure net gain calculations. Broadly similar list of habitats, although coastal and inter-tidal habitats are not included

UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)

Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU) sector
Mean species abundance – measure relative to undisturbed state

Mean Species Abundance scores are interacted with habitat area to determine the area that would be equivalent to complete loss of biodiversity (i.e. no natural habitat vs pristine habitat). Benefit transfer using ESVD suggested to provide monetary value for biodiversity changes