Wiltshire Wildlife Trust (WWT) has been awarded £99,081 from Natural England's Investment Readiness Fund (NEIRF) to support farmers across the county in becoming ‘investment ready’ for green finance. This funding will enable WWT, in partnership with Smart Land Management and Ecology, to work with farmers to develop nature-based projects which could secure private funding to deliver, such as Biodiversity Net Gain.
Building on the success of the Bristol Avon Catchment Market, this initiative aims to engage with over 100 farmers, supporting 15 to full project design and covering 100 hectares of land in becoming investment ready. This could potentially unlock £12.5 million in private investment for projects generating biodiversity net gain, carbon credits, and other ecosystem services.
The project will engage with farmers through a series of online and in-person events designed to inform and encourage participation in environmental markets. By fostering this knowledge sharing and peer-to-peer learning, the project will empower farmers to take advantage of emerging opportunities in the green economy.
A central focus of the project is the development of detailed nature-based project proposals and associated documentation which will identify opportunities to maximise environmental services, such as carbon sequestration, biodiversity enhancement, and water quality improvement. Through these efforts, the grant will support the development of a pipeline of projects to create a strong foundation for future investment in nature-based solutions across Wiltshire.
