Evaluating the feasibility of environmental DNA (eDNA) as a fast, low-cost and more accurate tool for measuring Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) in infrastructure projects

With the introduction of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) as a statutory requirement for planning applications in England and the expansion of requirements for measurable biodiversity enhancements gaining traction internationally, there is a need for rapid, cost-effective pre and post intervention assessment of the quantity and quality of a habitat.
Traditional walkover methods can be labour intensive and rely on visiting a site e.g. a floodplain meadow, at the right time of year which may not always be conducive with project programmes and commissions leading to the risk of a site being wrongly classified and designs being based on incorrect assumptions.
Long-term habitat monitoring (e.g. over 30 years) can be expensive, with projects often challenged by funding constraints and looking for cost effective ways of undertaking the monitoring required.
Environmental DNA (eDNA) monitoring offers a novel approach to overcoming many of the complexities associated with BNG assessment. eDNA enables the detection of genetic material naturally shed by organisms into the environment, providing a highly sensitive, non-invasive, and cost-effective means of measuring biodiversity.