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Morgan Sindall partners with charity to support biodiversity net gain

Morgan Sindall biodiversity — (Image: Morgan Sindall)

Morgan Sindall has partnered with environmental charity Groundwork to improve the biodiversity of 14 of its projects.

Groundwork will work with the contractor and its supply chain to source proposals and manage biodiversity outcomes. Morgan Sindall said that each selected project will be backed with a £10,000 grant.

The government launched last week new legislation aimed at land managers, developers and local planning authorities to deliver at least a 10% increase in biodiversity net gain, with around 14 local authorities already targeting a 20% increase.

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Morgan Sindall will be looking for sites where investment at this level can make a discernible improvement to biodiversity. A range of habitats, including estuaries, moorland, chalk bed streams and highly urban sites will be part of the programme.

Although initiatives such as planters, bug hotels, bird and bat boxes are examples of achieving low-level biodiversity, they offer only a small contribution to what’s needed to achieve both legislative requirements and long-term biodiversity targets.

Bat boxes installed

At Morgan Sindall’s Bishop’s Waltham Fire Station project in Hampshire, bat cavity wall boxes were installed into the structure. They were also combined with a green roof featuring a sedum mix of eight species of plant that will provide foraging grounds for bats in an urban habitat, as well as sensitive lighting to ensure the retention of existing bat commuting routes.

Tim Clement, director of social value and sustainability at Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “We recognise that as one of the leaders in the UK construction industry, we have a key role to play in understanding and promoting biodiversity.

“We are taking proactive measures to meet biodiversity net gain targets and invest in natural capital. Groundwork has an impressive and long track record of making a positive difference, supporting over 7,000 community organisations around the country each year, and we are delighted to be partnering with them as a route to meeting our objectives.”