Pioneering Consortium Secures Funding to Launch Innovative Fife Environment Bank

Publish Date: Friday July 25, 2025

A pioneering consortium, led by Fife Coast and Countryside Trust, has successfully secured significant funding to develop and test the feasibility of a Fife Environment Bank.

This groundbreaking initiative will establish a regional supplier of adapted Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) credits and carbon credits. All aimed at stimulating local investment in nature restoration that benefits local communities, encourages the development of blue/green businesses, and supports a transition to regenerative farming practices.

The Fife Environment Bank represents a major opportunity to implement Scotland’s environmental strategy at a regional, farmer and land manager level. The consortium has secured support from NatureScot and The National Lottery Heritage Fund through FIRNS – Facility for Investment Ready Nature Scotland.

The project is designed to connect farmers and land managers, looking to implement nature-based projects, with developers and organisations needing to meet environmental obligations. It will help realise the goals of Scotland’s Agricultural and Rural Communities Act (2024), Natural Capital Market Framework (2024), National Planning Framework 4 (2023) (NPF4) and the Climate Fife Strategy and Action Plan (2024).

Climate emergency

Fife Council’s environment spokesperson, Cllr Jan Wincott welcomed the news. She said: “This initiative will help to deliver on our commitment to tackling the climate emergency by investing in the long-term environmental health of local natural habitats.

“Creating these high-quality nature projects will help build more resilient and sustainable local environments in places where they’ll have the biggest impact. We’ll be looking with interest at how this helps boost biodiversity, stores carbon and supports the fight against climate change.”

A key feature of the bank will be its ability to offer upfront capital to farmers and land managers. This will remove a significant financial barrier to entry for habitat creation and carbon mitigation projects.

This innovative model will initially focus on the Fife region, creating a localised, transparent, and high-integrity supply of projects. These projects will be designed to provide a ready source of BNG and carbon credits. In providing finance, the bank will support sustainable development while delivering tangible improvements to the natural systems that underpin Fife’s economy and provide a range of benefits to local communities.

Communities’ ambitions

Kate Anstruther, Anstruther Improvements Association (AIA) Trustee and community engagement lead, commented: “Without integrating ‘nature finance’ into a working landscape such as the Dreel Burn, the communities’ ambitions to improve and restore the Dreel Burn and its surrounding environment are unlikely to be realised.

“This is because we require a viable business model to secure ongoing engagement by the farmer land managers. We need their permission and delivery capacity to make the necessary changes in land management practices, river morphology and land-use to clean up the river and bring back nature to the Dreel Burn.”

In parallel to the work being undertaken to develop the Fife Environment Bank, a range of Fife farmers have come forward, centred initially around the Dreel Burn river catchment at Anstruther. They are exploring working together on engaging ‘nature finance’ opportunities within a cooperative structure.

Cooperation

Douglas Bowden-Smith, the project’s Cooperative Development Lead at the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS), explained: “For 120 years, SAOS has supported the development of Scotland’s agri-cooperatives, and it’s a testament to that enduring ethos of self-determination through cooperation that a growing number of farmers in the Dreel Burn catchment are now recognising the value of working together and are exploring the formation of a cooperative to access natural capital markets.

“By co-operating, farmers and land managers can share risk, cut costs, build resilience, achieve viable scale, strengthen their negotiating position, and tap into shared knowledge and expertise. These benefits go far beyond individual farms, supporting the wider agricultural sector and delivering both economic and public value to rural communities across Scotland.”

Jeremy Harris, Chief Executive of Fife Coast and Countryside Trust said: “We have known for some time that the challenges we face require an approach that takes account of a wider system. The solutions sit beyond any one industry or even sector. Understanding that isn’t enough though, we have to translate that understanding into meaningful action. What excites me about this project is that we can do just that.

“We are building a new way for people from different sectors to work together. The prospect of farmers, investors, scientists, environmentalists, civil servants and many others all pulling in the same direction fills me with a great deal of hope for the future. I’m excited to see what we can achieve together in the coming months.”

Powerful mechanism

“We are thrilled to secure the funding to bring the Fife Environment Bank to life,” said Ed Heather-Hayes, the consortium’s project director. “This project provides a practical, powerful mechanism to channel private investment into our natural environment. This is while delivering social and economic benefits to both the rural and urban communities of Fife.

“By offering upfront capital, facilitating access to natural capital markets and exploiting the potential of cooperative selling power, we can empower farmers and land managers to undertake ambitious restoration projects. These projects will lock away carbon, create vital new habitats for wildlife and improve how we manage our water. As such, delivering a greener, more resilient Fife for future generations.”

The consortium plans to use the initial feasibility phase to refine the model, with the long-term vision of extending the service across a larger geographical area and broadening the range of environmental credits offered, potentially including water quality and flood mitigation.

About the Consortium

The consortium is a public, private and philanthropic partnership dedicated to developing innovative financial solutions to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss. Members include: Fife Coast and Countryside Trust (FCCT), Anstruther Improvements Association (AIA), Fife Council, Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS), Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), Kana Earth, Rebalance Earth, Scottish Power Energy Networks (SPEN), University St Andrews, Foundation Scotland, the UK Carbon Code of Conduct (UKCCC), the Nature Finance Certification Alliance (NFCA) and the Food Farming Countryside Commission (FFCC). The project is supported by The Facility for Investment Ready Nature in Scotland (FIRNS), delivered by NatureScot in collaboration with The Scottish Government and in partnership with the National Lottery Heritage Fund.