With 7,000 employees working across 200 organisations, Harwell Campus is home to world-class science & innovation, and we believe that, not only do we have a moral and ethical responsibility to the communities we serve, but that sustainability is integral to a strong and prosperous business.
“At Harwell, we have a vision to develop a sustainable Campus for world-class science & innovation, and to be recognised as a catalyst for sustainable growth.”
We have identified 7 Key Focus Areas, aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, as the guiding principles to put our Vision into Action and deliver a sustainable Campus environment, driven by our Sustainable Business Strategy & 2030 Roadmap.
One of our 7 Key Sustainability Objectives is to protect the natural environment and manage our estate sustainably, enhancing its biodiversity whilst creating a network of green spaces for people & nature. We believe this will be achieved by:
- Avoiding the loss of biodiversity and preserving trees, as far as practically possible.
- Managing our landscape to maximise its biodiversity value.
- Delivering new and improved ecological habitats on Campus.
- Securing significant biodiversity net gain through partnerships.
- Preventing air, land, and water pollution.
Our Woodland Habitat Improvement Project(WHIP), designed by Adam Frost and delivered by Nurture Landscapes, is an example of how we’re turning our commitment to Biodiversity into tangible action, receiving two Awards in 2023
- BIG Biodiversity Challenge Awards 2023 – Habitat Creation: Project of the Year Award (Small scale biodiversity enhancement of up to 0.5ha)
- Gold Winner at The International Green Apple Awards for Environmental Best Practice 2023
Watch our video introducing the scheme and read our BIG Biodiversity Challenge Awards entry for more details
Building on this success, we set up the Harwell Biodiversity Taskforce and commissioned a campus-wide ecological habitats survey to provide us with a baseline and inform the development of a 5-year Biodiversity Action Plan. This will allow us to identify improvement opportunities, and measure their impact, with the aim to manage 30% of our land for biodiversity by 2030.
On new developments, our design team is required to minimise the loss of biodiversity and maximise it through landscaping whilst creating opportunities to connect building occupants with nature. Although theDEFRA metric is a key tool to assess the impact on biodiversity and compensate for losses through the statutory process, we are also measuring the value of the landscape design using the UrbanGreening Factor (UGF) Calculator, targeting a minimum of 0.3 and aiming towards 0.4 or above.
For more information about Harwell Sustainability efforts, please visit our website:
https://www.harwellcampus.com/sustainability/
