United Kingdom
Habitat mapping and biodiversity toolkits for Transport for London estates
Transport for London (TfL) has committed to protecting and enhancing its natural assets and has a key target of delivering biodiversity net gain across its estate of highway, rail and underground assets. WSP assessed all habitats within TfL’s estate across Greater London and surrounding areas to provide an up-to-date biodiversity baseline dataset. To identify remaining habitats and gaps in coverage from previous surveys, WSP ran a high-resolution remote sensing assessment using LiDAR aerial photography and, satellite data.
Biodiversity toolkits were developed to help enable TfL to monitor biodiversity gains and losses at a network level as well as individual development projects. WSP also produced guidance documents in consultant with TfL, the Greater London Authority and others, as well as developed and ran training for TfL staff and external ecologists contracted on development projects.
This approach has allowed TfL to track progress against its biodiversity targets and objectives for the first time, as well as providing the basis of ensuring they meet the Mayor of London’s strategic environmental and transport objectives. This approach is now being used on projects across the UK including HS2. The project was shortlisted for a TfL contractor award for ‘best environment project’.
