The international certification body BREEAM* has now officially endorsed CLIMB as a method for demonstrating biodiversity benefits. This confirms the role of CLIMB as a standardized and scientific approach to assessing biodiversity in construction and development projects.
CLIMB stands for Changing Land use Impact on Biodiversity. The method has been developed by Ecogain and several large companies in the Swedish business sector, together with leading researchers and experts in biodiversity. CLIMB allows land use actors to assess and quantify their efforts to conserve and enhance biodiversity in different environments.
- Those who have certified their construction projects can now demonstrate that they have achieved real biodiversity benefits. The ability to use CLIMB will not only speed up the certification process but also provide a framework to measure and report biodiversity benefits in a transparent and credible way," said Agnes Sandström, Landscape Architect at Ecogain.
*BREEAM stands for Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method, and is an internationally recognized certification method for construction and development projects.
Facts about CLIMB
CLIMB, Changing Land Use Impact on Biodiversity, is a model for calculating the current situation and the positive and negative impacts on biodiversity associated with land use change.
CLIMB can be applied, among other things, to:
- compare localizations and layouts
- overview and evaluate different effects of investments
- increase predictability in environmental assessment
- enable monitoring against targets
- report impacts on biodiversity
- develop new biodiversity key performance indicators
The basic formula for the measurement tool is based on the British DEFRAS Biodiversity Metric, but in CLIMB it has been further developed and adapted to Nordic conditions. CLIMB uses standardized input data and expert knowledge to plan, prioritize and calculate parameters for restoration and compensation - resulting in profitability for both the company and nature.
CLIMB is a collaborative project with Ecogain, Talga, Vattenfall, Sveriges Bergmaterialindustri, Skanska, Svenska Kraftnät, Svemin, Boliden, LKAB, Specialfastigheter, Skellefteå Kraft, Heidelberg Materials.
Over 200 people have engaged and provided important feedback.
An Advisory Board with representatives from the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, SLU, Lund University, Chalmers, IIASA, Anthesis, Skellefteå Kraft and Ecogain has been continuously involved in the work on method development.
The project is part of the Strategic Innovation Program Swedish Mining Innovation and is a joint initiative of Vinnova, Formas and the Swedish Energy Agency.
Ecogain organizes courses to get started with CLIMB for planning, reporting, business strategy, ordering or own calculations.
More information about CLIMB:
www.ecogain.se/climb | www.climb.ecogain.se | CLIMB will be a pioneer in biodiversity work
