Introduction to the Biodiversity Metric Watercourse Module

This course will provide an introduction to the Biodiversity Metric Watercourse Module and how to proceed with a Watercourse Module assessment, explaining:

• (i) its context as part of the wider Biodiversity Metric ;
• (ii) the individual components that make up the Watercourse Module and how they contribute towards the calculation of Watercourse Units;
• (iii) what information is needed for each component in order to complete the Watercourse Module within the Biodiversity Metric spreadsheet, and where to access it;
• (iv) how to approach a Watercourse Module assessment for different types of watercourse and project.

This course will be suitable for environmental professionals of all disciplines who are involved in planning or undertaking Biodiversity Net Gain assessments at locations where watercourses may be affected. Delegates will include ecologists / geomorphologists / conservation managers or project leads in public, private or NGO sector organisations.

The course is designed to be complementary to CIEEM’s programme of Biodiversity Net Gain courses and the River Condition Assessment training course provided by Cartographer Studios Ltd. Neither course is a requirement or pre-requisite for attending this course.

This course will welcome a diverse mix of disciplines and roles in delegate groups to encourage awareness of the benefits of taking an interdisciplinary and partnership approach to integrated (ecological/geomorphological) assessment.

Knowledge of the Biodiversity Metric Calculation Tool and/or Net Gain will be useful but is not essential.

• Understand what the Biodiversity Metric Watercourse Module is, what it includes and does not.
• Identify what data and supporting information are needed to enable the Watercourse Module assessment to be completed and Watercourse Units generated using the Biodiversity Metric Calculation Tool
• Find the necessary guidance, accredited training and support options for the River Condition Assessment
• Plan a Watercourse Module assessment from start to finish at a typical development site (using case study examples)
• Plan and identify additional support options for a Watercourse Module assessment at an atypical / complex development site (using case study examples)