Surrey County Council has been awarded over £250,000 to produce a ‘nature recovery plan’ for Surrey which will map out actions with landowners, local communities and others to help restore nature across the county.

Known as a Local Nature Recovery Strategy, Surrey County Council is one of 48 local authorities to be given responsibility for this work by DEFRA, which will address the current nature crisis across England.

The strategy will focus on measures needed to reverse biodiversity loss, reconnect habitats, and protect wildlife. It will also consider other environmental benefits including flood regulation, water quality, resilience to wildfires, carbon sequestration and improved access to green space for health and wellbeing.

The council will work closely with Natural England, the districts and boroughs, representatives from farming, health and development sector and with local community groups to develop the strategy over the next 12-18 months.

Marisa Heath, Surrey County Council Cabinet Member for Environment said: “Surrey is an ecologically diverse county – we are the most wooded county in England and also have heathlands and chalk grasslands of national and international importance.

“We have ambitious plans to reverse biodiversity loss within the county, and along with our climate change goals, recovery of our essential natural habitats and systems is a big priority for us. We’re pleased we’ve been appointed by Government to coordinate this strategy which will play an integral part of a national effort to combat not only biodiversity loss, but also help our county mitigate and adapt to climate change.

“We are already doing a lot to help us achieve our goal to be net zero by 2050 to help Surrey thrive  for generations to come,. The Local Nature Recovery Strategy will contribute to these targets, whilst also driving action on the ground for nature conservation.”