National Wealth Service

• Natural England’s State of Natural Capital Report for England 2024 highlights vital link between nature and our health, wealth and security
• Report points the way for decision makers to ensure nature and economic growth can work hand-in-hand

Natural capital is the parts of nature that provide benefits to people. We depend on it for the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat. It boosts our health and wellbeing. It captures and stores carbon and has a vital role to play in helping us adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Natural capital is also an economic concept. It considers nature as a stock of assets, which we have to invest in. Ecosystem assets need to be in a healthy state to support the benefits society relies on

The State of Natural Capital Report, published by Natural England, provides a unique insight into the vital role that healthy nature plays in underpinning our economic health.

The report provides a comprehensive assessment of the state of our ecosystem assets, such as wetlands and forests, and the important role they play in sustaining us and the risks to society and the economy if the status quo is maintained.

Key findings:

Because our ecosystem assets are degraded, they are less able to cope with the impact of future change. Our assets are already very highly impacted by land and sea-use change, pollution, natural resource use and exploitation and climate change. There is currently a very rapid increase in the severity of impacts of climate change, associated invasive species (including pests and diseases) and land and sea-use change. This puts the assets and benefits we rely on at risk.

• All of our ecosystem assets, and almost all the benefits they provide, are at high or medium-high risk:
• Assets at high risk: marine; coastal margins; freshwaters and wetlands; mountains moorlands and heaths; woodlands.
• Assets at medium-high risk: semi-natural grasslands; enclosed farmland; urban.
• Benefits at high risk: timber and other wood products; produce from the sea; plentiful water; reared animals and their outputs; clean water; erosion control; flood protection; thriving plants and wildlife; cultural benefits.
• Benefits at medium-high risk: cultivated crops; clean air; urban cooling; noise regulation; pollination; pest and disease control.

Priority actions and opportunities There are three main ways to reduce risk to natural capital:

• Restore ecosystems.
• Reduce impacts of drivers of change.
• Make natural capital central to decision-making

Follow this link to read the Natural England press release on the National Wealth Service.

Follow this link to read the State of Natural Capital Report for England 2024