The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment report states that “Everyone in the world depends on nature and ecosystem services to provide the conditions for a decent, healthy, and secure life.”
The Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 places a duty on all public bodies, including planning authorities, to further the conservation of biodiversity in undertaking their functions.
Fife is fortunate to have a wealth of fantastic habitats, from its stunning coastline of cliffs and sand dunes, to the blustery heathland of the Lomond Hills. These habitats support a huge amount of wildlife. In fact, over 10,000 different species of plants and animals have been found in the kingdom. This tapestry of habitats, and the plants and animals that they support, together make up biodiversity - the rich variety of life on earth.
Biodiversity plays a vital role in our everyday life. It sustains the ecosystems that provide us with food, fuel, clean water, health and wealth. For instance:
For more information, check out our Biodiversity in Fife pages where you will also find Fife Council Biodiversity Duty Reports and information on Fife Nature Records Centre.
We are currently consulting on a refresh of the Fife Forestry and Woodland Strategy which will eventually replace the 2013 Fife Forestry and Woodland Strategy. The draft strategy updates the vision, proposes new targets for woodland expansion and places a greater emphasis on the impacts of climate change and addressing the biodiversity emergency. The draft strategy comprises a storymap which sets out the vision, aims and priorities of the strategy and a supporting document which includes the detailed background. The consultation is open until midnight on Monday the 7th July 2025.
Fife’s Local Development Plan aims to ensure:
Planning policy safeguards Fife’s natural heritage through the protection of priority habitats, species and habitat networks of wildlife sites and corridors, watercourses, wetlands, landscape features and open space, some of which may not fall within designated sites.
Thoughtful development design can deliver high quality, successful places that protect and enhance natural heritage assets and biodiversity. However, without care poorly sited and designed development can affect species and habitats and lead to habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation.
Development proposals must provide an assessment of the potential impact on natural heritage and biodiversity and include proposals for the enhancement of natural heritage and access assets, as detailed in Making Fife’s Places Supplementary Guidance.
Use this link to our Interactive Map to help with Site Assessments. This includes: