CLIMB quantifies and gives a value to biodiversity
CLIMB is an area-based calculation model that Ecogain's experts have developed in collaboration with several major players in Swedish industry, and with the support of Swedish Mining Innovation.
A CLIMB calculation quantifies biodiversity in CUs (CLIMB Units), which indicate a value of nature within a specific area. It allows for new biodiversity KPIs, and can be related, for example, to the installed capacity of wind or solar power, or kilometers of road or other infrastructure.
How to use CLIMB in your projects
With CLIMB, you calculate the current situation, and negative and positive impacts on biodiversity. This makes it easier to avoid and minimize your impact on nature, and also follow the development of your activities and efforts over time.
Examples of uses:
- investigate alternative locations and designs
- assess the impact before and after a change in land use
- overview and evaluate different impacts
- streamline the environmental assessment of your activities
- plan and implement restoration and compensation
- enable follow-up against clearly formulated objectives
- report impacts on biodiversity
- develop new biodiversity key performance indicators
Different levels of CLIMB calculations
CLIMB can be applied at different levels depending on the needs of your organization.
Complete CLIMB calculation: To assess nature values, plan biodiversity interventions and calculate site change over time.
Overview calculation: Can be applied at global level, and provides good basic information on your local impact using CLIMB as a basis (not CLIMB calculation).
Preparatory data collection in the field; In parallel with the nature value inventory, we collect supplementary data for CLIMB calculation at the level of NVI that you have ordered. This is a very time- and cost-effective way to lay the foundation for a later CLIMB calculation.
Clarity in environmental assessments
CLIMB creates predictability in environmental assessments and facilitates the formulation of conditions. The calculation can form the basis for key figures and balance sheet of nature in the project, and meet future reporting requirements under CSRD. The calculations will also be an important tool in planning restoration and compensation.
Since the launch of the calculation model in September 2023, the Land and Environment Courts have in several cases decided on conditions based on CLIMB:
The company shall implement measures to compensate for the loss of nature values resulting from the activities. The compensation measures shall correspond to at least 115% of the impact value, calculated according to the CLIMB calculation model or similar calculation model"
(M 1573-20)
The impact of CLIMB is due to the fact that the model represents a reasonable balance between scientific accuracy and commercial applicability. For example, this is what the Swedish EPA said about CLIMB in a case:
According to the Swedish EPA, the CLIMB model's systematic and relatively standardized assessments of natural values are a great advantage"
Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (M9227-23)
Ecogain training courses in CLIMB
Ecogain offers digital training and support in CLIMB.
