Biodiversity Action Plan

We all have a role to play in protecting and enhancing the variety of life, or ‘biodiversity’. Biodiversity encompasses all living things, including both rare and common species. Test Valley has a wide range of habitats (including chalk downland, wetland habitats and woodland) and species (such as otters, dormice and skylarks) – some of those found within the Borough are of international importance.

The Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP) is a working document that provides a framework for the maintenance and enhancement of the biodiversity of the Borough. The document includes actions for a number of organisations operating within Test Valley.

It has been published by Test Valley Borough Council and was written in conjunction with the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. The BAP also has the support of the Environment Group representing the Test Valley Partnership, a group of stakeholders with a special remit for developing environmental activities as part of the Borough’s Community Strategy.

Monitoring Review

A monitoring review was undertaken for the period August 2008 to December 2009 to consider the early progress in delivering the BAP actions. This report found that many projects are underway across the Borough, which shows an encouraging start. The report and associated annexes are available below:

Partner Organisations

There are a number of organisations involved in biodiversity within Test Valley (see Appendix 6 of the Biodiversity Action Plan). A list of the websites of some of the main organisations is provided below.