Wealden District Council is required to monitor Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) obligations over the full habitat management period, which is typically 30 years. Monitoring fees are therefore secured to cover the Council’s costs associated with reviewing, administering and monitoring Biodiversity Gain Plans, Habitat Management and Monitoring Plans, and any associated legal obligations. This includes reviewing monitoring reports, assessing habitat condition, maintaining monitoring records, verifying compliance with approved management measures, and taking appropriate action where obligations are not being met. The fees ensure that the Council has sufficient resources available to fulfil its statutory and contractual monitoring responsibilities throughout the lifetime of the agreement.
How Monitoring Fees Are Calculated
Standardised monitoring fees have been developed which are between £4,970.65 and £33,509.75.
The fees have been developed to reflect the anticipated resource requirements associated with monitoring different BNG schemes over the management period. In calculating the fee, the following factors are taken into account:
Site size:
- very small; 0 to 5ha;
- small; 5 to 10ha;
- medium; 10 to 20ha; or
- large; 20 to 40 ha;
Technical difficulty:
- low;
- moderate; and/or
- high; and
- the expected monitoring schedule i.e. years monitoring reports will need to be submitted, and therefore time spent by officers.
The fees also incorporate an allowance for inflation (5%) to ensure that sufficient resources remain available throughout the monitoring period.
Application of Monitoring Fees
Monitoring fees are not required for all forms of BNG delivery. In particular, they are generally not sought where biodiversity gain is secured solely through statutory biodiversity credits, habitat banks secured through alternative legal arrangements, or non-significant on-site gains secured through planning conditions alone.