1 in 9 species in Scotland are at risk of extinction

Whether you’re at home, work, or school, you can help take action to enhance biodiversity. Small actions can make a big difference, especially when everyone takes part and action is joined up.

Do A Little - Change A Lot

What is Biodiversity?

Biodiversity is the variety of all living things on our planet including plants, animals, insects and microorganisms. These all live and work together in ecosystems to maintain and support life on earth, existing in delicate balance.

Biodiversity also means:

• the genetic variation within species
• all the planet’s habitats and ecosystems (all life in our forests, mountains, rivers, lochs, seas, gardens, and parks)
• the different ways living things interact with each other and their habitats

Why is Biodiversity Important?

We often think of biodiversity as something that’s just nice to look at, and enjoy spending time in. It is so much more, and we rely on it for the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat.

Let's take pollinators as an example. Pollinators such as birds, bees, bats, and other insects play an important role in agriculture and are estimated to be responsible for a third of the world’s crop production. Without pollinators we would not have apples, cherries, blueberries, almonds and many other foods we eat.

What is the Biodiversity Crisis?

Biodiversity is currently declining faster than at any time in human history. Many are calling this a code red for nature due to these shocking findings: ​​​​​​​

• 1 in 9 species in Scotland are at risk of extinction.
• Scottish wildlife has decreased on average by 15% since 1994.
• Since 1970, the distribution of 47% of flowering plants has decreased.
• Since 1980 the number of pollinating insects in Scotland - honey bees, bumble bees, the solitary bee, butterflies and hoverflies - have declined by an estimated 51%.
• Scotland ranks 28th from the bottom in the Biodiversity Intactness Index. This means that nature in Scotland is more depleted than 88% of 240 countries and territories across the world.

Biodiversity decline is caused by a range of issues including land use changes, overfishing, climate change, intensified agriculture, fragmentation of habitats, invasive non-native species and pollution.

If the current trends in biodiversity loss continue, one million plant and animal species will be threatened with extinction globally. This has been referred to as the sixth mass extinction, caused by human activities.

The biodiversity crisis is already impacting millions of people around the world. A decline in global biodiversity is putting our ability to produce food at risk and overfishing is also impacting food supplies and livelihoods in coastal communities.

Take Action

Visit our Take Action section for guidance on how we can all help tackle the nature crisis. Individuals, businesses, community groups, and all age groups can take positive action to make change.

Every action counts! We can all play a role to help combat the significant impacts climate change has on wildlife. Extreme weather effects like flooding, droughts and wildfires do not only cause issues to humans but may also cause irreversible changes to nature like loss of habitat for certain species. Therefore, protecting, restoring and enhancing our natural assets, and the species that inhabit them is essential. Many natural habitats like woodlands and peatlands are key in tackling the climate emergency as they are highly effective in capturing carbon and reducing emissions to mitigate climate change. The way we manage our gardens and public greenspaces also plays a vital role to combat the impacts of climate change.

The Tayside Biodiversity Partnership covers the local authority areas of both Perth and Kinross and Angus. The partnership is made up of statutory bodies, local authorities, non-government organisations and individuals and has produced a Local Biodiversity Action Plan to ensure that locally and nationally important species and habitats are conserved and enhanced through focused local action.

For more information visit the Tayside Biodiversity Partnership website.

Tayside Local Biodiversity Action Plan 2016-2026

Tayside Biodiversity Partnership's Local Biodiversity Action Plan 2016-2026 (PDF) [12MB] charts the way ahead in protecting the multitude of flora and fauna that flourish across the county, as well as their habitats, bringing together organisations, communities and individuals. The new plan has more than 140 projects you might want to get involved in. In 2022, PKC undertook a review of all 284 PKC actions in the Tayside Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP) allocating a traffic light system of red, amber and green to indicate progress and identify gaps. The results are being used to prioritise project work and to guide allocation of the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF).

Key Milestones - Perth & Kinross Council

Perth and Kinross Council has achieved much for biodiversity in recent years with enhanced mainstreaming and prioritisation of climate change and reducing biodiversity loss. Many challenges remain and there are multiple opportunities to further the conservation of biodiversity in our daily activities.

One highlight has been launching our biodiversity programme of events. From practical pond enhancement work to webinars on identify pollinating species, we have a full packed agenda for staff to get involved in.

Another highlight has been the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF). This is a 5-year commitment by the Scottish Government to funding projects aimed at “restoring nature and improving biodiversity on land and in the seas”, launched in 2021. The capital grant funding received has included: £166,000 in 2021-2022; £193,000 in 2022-2023; and £353,000 in 2023-2024.

This funding has been used to fund both Council and community group projects. The NRF and the efforts of hard-working community groups have greatly helped address the nature and climate crisis by enhancing biodiversity across Perth and Kinross, providing essential habitat restoration and connectivity.

This funding is being used to help create nature networks across Perth and Kinross. A Nature Network connects areas protected for biodiversity, and other nature-rich sites through a series of areas of suitable habitat, habitat corridors and stepping-stones.

Funding for future years up to 2025/2026 is included in the Scottish Government programme, so different council services should start thinking about pulling together a project for 2024-2025. Application dates will be released as soon as possible after the Council is notified. The next funding round is likely to open in the summer. There will be an online enquiry form to complete for those who would like to check whether their project fits the purpose of the fund. Any other queries can be directed to [email protected].

Our Community Stories section of the site provides Nature Restoration Fund case studies.

Biodiversity Duty Reporting

Perth and Kinross Council has a legal requirement to publish a three yearly report on how it is performing in fulfilling its Biodiversity Duty. The latest biodiversity duty report can be accessed here - Biodiversity Duty Report 2021-2023.pdf. The next report will cover the period from January 2024 to December 2026.

Embedding biodiversity into Council roles

Biodiversity actions very much include, but stretch much more widely than just for staff in Greenspace. The helpful: A Guide to Incorporating Biodiversity into Local Services helps staff by providing ideas to promote biodiversity within different local authority services e.g. education, housing, greenspace etc. Each action is assigned a tick box so that Services can quickly check how they may be contributing to the biodiversity process. It shows what is possible and what has been achieved to date via case studies.

Protecting Biodiversity in Development Management

Planning applications are screened by the Tree and Biodiversity Officer for potential impacts on biodiversity. The sustainable land use tool on GIS highlights ecological and biodiversity constraints and is used by Officers to inform proposals that require an Environment Impact Assessment and/or Habitat Regulations Appraisal to ensure the Council complies with European environmental legislation and statutory requirements. This systematic approach contributes to the Council’s biodiversity duty.

Planning For Nature Guidance

PKC developed the Planning for Nature Supplementary Guidance, which was adopted in April 2022, to bring together the expectations and requirements for planning applications regarding information on
biodiversity. The importance of accurate ecological surveys undertaken in accordance with best practice and carried out by suitably qualified and experienced persons is stressed as well as the need for impact assessments and clear evidence of the mitigation hierarchy. Implementation of the Supplementary Guidance (SG) has been supported by workshops for Development Management Officers and was highlighted at the 2023 Housebuilders Forum to raise awareness to developers.

Staff Biodiversity Ambassadors

The PKC Biodiversity Ambassadors group comprises of members from all across the council who are interested in nature. The Council regularly run webinars and in person events including opportunities to get outside. This includes tree planting, training sessions on species identification, presentations from external organisations and more. The biodiversity ambassadors network helps us mainstream biodiversity throughout different council services. Members can then raise the profile of biodiversity within their own teams.