Borderlands Natural Capital Initiative
‘Natural capital’ is a term for our natural resources: our geology, soils, air, water, and all living organisms. Together these provide direct benefits to us, for example through combating climate change, supporting biodiversity, producing food, and providing environments that are good for our health and wellbeing. Our Borderlands initiative focuses on grassland management and woodland expansion on small to medium sized livestock farms. It will explore how whole farm audits that measure the natural capital of a holding could, with the support of specialist advisers, be used to identify positive actions that benefit our natural capital whilst also benefitting agricultural operations. This project not only addresses the need to assess and protect our local resources, but also the requirement to take a future-focused approach to land management that will be part of a robust and sustainable economy.
The Borderlands Natural Capital Initiative is a collaboration with our partners Dumfries & Galloway Council and South of Scotland Enterprise.