Biodiversity Audit Project Officer

Scotland’s Natural Capital Pilot Programme (NCAPP) is a suite of projects to test natural capital and outcomes based approaches on land, in order to inform future rural policy and land management support schemes. You will be working as part of a dispersed team to deliver specific projects under this programme.

The Biodiversity Audit (part of NCAPP) is a key part of the development of sustainable farming support under the Scottish Government’s National Test Programme, which aims to design and test tools and processes to reward farmers for climate and biodiversity outcomes. This approach could ultimately allow farmers and crofters be paid for the quality of the environmental outcomes delivered, rather than being paid to follow prescriptive management actions. The Biodiversity Audit is intended to enable famers and land managers to identify the habitats present at a farm level, assess their condition, and identify the opportunities to protect and enhance biodiversity through appropriate management. An app and website will be developed to assist farmers through this process. We are looking to test the first stages of the Biodiversity Audit with farmers and land managers this financial year. Your role will be instrumental in developing and setting this up, working with other NatureScot staff and stakeholders, especially work on habitat mapping and designing and testing indicators for habitat quality.

Office or home base location is flexible but you should be prepared to travel to clusters of farms to undertake the project, which may be at several geographical areas or farmland types throughout Scotland. Job sharing is possible. A level of flexibility is expected to work across other NCAPP projects if needed.