Biodiversity and sustainable development: from biodiversity strategies to environmental calculations

Biodiversity is a foundation for life that people, businesses and societies are dependent on. For companies, biodiversity means not only an opportunity and a source of raw materials and other necessary ecosystem services, but also business risks as the loss of natural resources increases. We at Sweco help our clients manage their natural capital sustainably and take nature into account as part of their projects. Our services include biodiversity strategies and guidelines, various types of biodiversity mappings, nature impact and risk analyses, as well as reviews on ecological compensation.

Wellbeing for nature and added value for business through biodiversity strategy

In order for nature to recover and the loss of biodiversity to be prevented, extensive societal changes are required. For companies, this will mean a need to identify the effects that their activities have on the environment and dependencies throughout the value chain. Based on these, companies will be able to assess their operations and look for new business models that support biodiversity.

The biodiversity strategy puts into words the way in which a company’s business operations can bring added value to the economy and nature. A strategic approach can help manage business risks arising from loss of natural resources and identify new opportunities at the forefront of a nature-positive transition. The minimum standards for companies’ biodiversity work are determined by UN conventions, and EU and Finnish legislation.

Our objective in land use and town planning is to create areas that promote ecosystem services and reduce adverse environmental effects. When planning the layout of a city, we emphasise an ecological community structure that combines efficient land use, green areas and environmentally friendly public transport. Our aim is to improve the quality of habitats and reduce pollution and energy consumption.

In landscape design , we take local vegetation and biodiversity into account, which increases the ecological value of the area. One aspect of landscape design is creating plans for planted vegetation, which involves choosing suitable plant species that promote biodiversity by providing habitats for different species. Wherever possible, we always make use of environmentally friendly solutions, such as green roofs and walls, and organic building materials.

Tools to promote biodiversity

Quantification methods pertaining to biodiversity are important for assessing the current state of and changes in biodiversity. The methods can be used to investigate either specific groups of organisms or the entire ecosystem. We use the findings to assess the prevalence of species, their level of endangerment and the condition of habitats, and to plan and monitor conservation and restoration measures.

Nature and biodiversity consulting and the annual clock of nature surveys

Sweco’s Nature and Biodiversity Consulting department operates under the sustainability consultancy and offers customers a wide range of services related to nature surveys, nature impact assessment and biodiversity.

A key part of the work of nature and water experts are surveys of species and species groups as well as habitats in the terrain, the timeliness of which must be taken into account in project scheduling. To facilitate cooperation, we have compiled an annual clock of the most common surveys to be carried out in projects.