The second round of the Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund (NEIRF) will provide grants of up to £100,000 ($125,000) to UK farm groups to boost nature investments. The news was announced by Defra and the Environment Agency.
The funding is aimed at the development of 50 projects that capture the value of CO2, water quality, and biodiversity.
The projects will generate revenue through selling carbon storage, decreased costs for water treatment, flood prevention, and improved biodiversity. The government target is at least £500 million of private investment annually by 2027 for natural recovery, and that amount will rise to at least £1 billion annually by 2030.
Among the grant receivers is the Soil Association, a group that got £100,000 ($125,000) and will invest the money in establishing a carbon code for agroforestry systems.
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Another group to receive a £95,000 ($119,000) grant is the Lapwing Estate Limited, which will grow wet woodland on rewetted peat to generate fuel for food production indoors.
The North East Cotswold Farmer Cluster CIC will use its funds – in the amount of £98,500 – to build a new approach for the farmers’ investment in natural capital projects. One hundred farmers will work together to improve biodiversity and carbon water quality and manage flood risk.
The National Trust will use the grant to support its farmers in transitioning to more environmentally friendly techniques.
“The finance community is increasingly aware that investors want to understand how their savings deliver good outcomes on the ground,” said Emma Howard Boyd, chair of the Environment Agency. “What we learn from these projects will help the private sector invest in activities that deliver both environmental improvements and generate returns. By showing what works we can attract a wider pool of investors to fund work on a much larger scale that helps protect people from climate impacts and restores nature.”
Twenty-nine UK farm groups in total are already using the funding from the first NEIRF round to create new woodland, deliver flood risk management and improve water quality.
