NATURAL CAPITAL
Natural capital is a formal term for something that is the foundation of all life, healthy land. It filters water, builds soil, stores carbon and supports wildlife. When it's functioning well, it provides services that underpin everything, food, clean water, flood resilience, the air we breathe. When it isn't, these natural systems degrade and decline.
The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. We've lost around 50% of our biodiversity since the industrial revolution, and the pace of loss is still accelerating. At Belmont, we're working to change that across two very different landscapes, at a scale that is making a difference.
What we do
In Somerset, at Watercress Farm long-term ecological recovery is happening through rewilding, rewetting and free-roaming native livestock breeds. The 140-acres of intensive farmland is now a thriving mosaic of habitats.
At Aberarder in the Scottish Highlands, we’re doing nature recovery at landscape scale, including peatland restoration, replanting native woodland and river rejuvenation. The nature recovery work we do across these sites isn't just good for wildlife, it generates verified natural capital, real, measurable improvements in habitats, carbon and biodiversity that organisations can invest in to meet their environmental goals.
Our Natural Capital Products
Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) Units
The Environment Act 2021 requires most new developments in England to leave biodiversity in a better state than they found it. Our BNG units are generated through genuine habitat creation and recovery at Watercress Farm, registered on DEFRA’s national Biodiversity Gain Sites register. Every unit represents real habitat in the ground, monitored and managed for 30 years.
CARBON UNITS
Our carbon projects sequester carbon through woodland regeneration and reduce emissions through peatland restoration at Aberarder. Both are independently verified against recognised UK standards (Woodland Carbon Code and Peatland Code). Both deliver additional benefits: better soil health, improved water quality, and reduced flood risk downstream.
NATURE RECOVERY UNITS
For organisations that want to do more than compliance requires, NRUs support habitat creation, species recovery and ecological connectivity, a direct investment in nature at a meaningful scale.
Certified and verified
Our units are verified independently to recognised standards where possible, such as the Peatland and Woodland Code, and registered on DEFRA's national Biodiversity Gain Sites register.
Working With Us
We offer units from our own registered sites, as well as a carefully curated network of landowners and estates. Our Director of Natural Capital and Ecology leads the ecological design and verification of Belmont’s projects, so if you would like to understand what your BNG obligation requires or whether natural capital investment makes sense for your organisation, we are happy to discuss this with you or organise a tour of our rewilding project.
