Biodiversity Offsets: Effective Design

Abstract

Biodiversity offsets are being increasingly used in a wide range of sectors as a mechanism to help compensate for the adverse effects caused by development projects in a variety of ecosystems. Based on the polluter pays approach, they are normally undertaken within an overall objective of no net loss of biodiversity. Their design and implementation features are critical to determining their environmental and cost effectiveness, as well as their distributional implications. This publication examines the opportunities and challenges associated with biodiversity offset programmes and provides policy makers and practitioners with good practice insights on their design and implementation so as to ensure more effective outcomes. It draws on lessons and insights from more than 40 case studies worldwide and three in-depth reviews from the United States, Germany and Mexico.