How Have Regulatory Changes Impacted Ecology in the UK, and What Is to Come in the Near Future?

Wed 05/27/2026 - 16:28

After leaving the EU, the 1992 Habitats Directive is no longer applicable to the United Kingdom.

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The EU’s Habitats Directive ensured regulations were in place regarding conservation of natural habitats, creating designated Special Areas of Conservation and listing the various species of flora and fauna to be protected. The UK is actively developing new legislation to replace it with several regulatory bills such as the UK Environments Act 2021, Eurasian Beaver Protection 2022, UK Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 and the Biodiversity Net Gain of 2024.

In this blog, we look at the impact of these changes, as well as what might be coming next.

UK Environment Act 2021

Provides a new Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) watchdog which creates a framework for legally binding targets, to include wildlife conservation.
Allows the population to have a greater input in the management of local biodiversity (e.g. local street trees), enshrining in law the idea of biodiversity offsetting.
Includes new rules to stop the importation of materials and key commodities to the UK from areas of legally deforested land, such as wood, soy, palm oil, beef, and leather.

The Beavers Order 2022

The Eurasian beaver given further legal protection under changes to the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.
Now an offence to deliberately disturb, capture, injure, or kill beavers without a licence, as well as damage or destroy beavers’ breeding sites or resting places.
Ecologists need to be aware that beavers may be in the area and must ensure developers obtain a licence before any potential criminal offences against beavers occur.

Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023

Introduces the Environmental Outcomes Reports (EOR) to reform how projects assess environmental impact by meeting specific environmental outcomes set by the government, this will be phased in by 2027.

Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) 2024

Introduces a mandatory minimum of at least 10% net gain in biodiversity value for both major projects and small sites, requiring developers to plan habitat enhancements.
Ensures that developers leave the natural environment in a better state than it was before.
The 10% net gain must be maintained for at least 30 years.

As we move further away from our departure from the EU, regulations are continuing to evolve, with lots happening this year. It’s important to stay informed of all the relevant legislative updates within ecology in this ever-changing landscape, and that’s why we ensure our customers are kept up to date.

James Sneddon, Ecology Project Manager at SOCOTEC

There are plans for a new system of environmental impact reports to be phased in by 2027. The Environmental Outcomes Reports (EOR) will be replacing Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) in 2027. Under the EOR framework, instead of evaluating a project’s broad environmental effects as under EIA, developers and plan-makers will need to assess how their projects meet specific environmental outcomes set by the government. This moves towards a more quantifiable set of targets for a project to look at the contributions to biodiversity enhancement and pollution reduction, as opposed to the predicted impacts of measures such as lighting.

Habitat Regulations and Species Licensing is also changing. There is currently an ongoing roll-out of District Level Licensing (DLL). This is already in place for Great Crested Newts but will be implemented on a more widespread basis. The changes include the potential introduction of a Nature Restoration Fund, meaning that developers could opt to pay into a central conservation fund instead of on-site mitigation.

Alongside this, there will be updated guidance for Habitat Regulations Assessments (HRA). HRAs currently look at statutory designated sites and the potential likelihood of any negative impacts from changes, but there is little detail on the proposed changes at this time.

Biodiversity Net Gain will also be reviewed. The current legislation ensures a mandatory minimum of at least 10% net gain in biodiversity value for both major projects and small sites, requiring developers to plan habitat enhancements. This is likely to be scrapped entirely for sites smaller than 0.2 hectares. There will still be a requirement to protect species and improve habitats, but there won’t be a required percentage target, and this will differ between the UK nations.

There have been recent post-Brexit regional updates in legislation, most notably with Biodiversity Net Gain differing in all four nations. Scotland’s Natural Environment Act passed in January 2026, detailing that all major developments must include significant biodiversity enhancements. Wales’ Environment Act passed in February 2026, introducing legally binding biodiversity targets. Northern Ireland has also drafted a new Nature Recovery Strategy with consultation opening in 2026.

As ecology regulations continue to change and evolve, it’s important to stay informed. At SOCOTEC, we can carry out a wide range of ecology surveys for clients such as preliminary ecological appraisals, biodiversity net gain assessments, and habitats regulations assessments. For more information about what we can offer, please contact us.