Biodiversity
Heathrow covers an area of over 1,200 hectares. As well as runways, terminals and aircraft stands, the airport includes grassland, other landscaped areas and a variety of natural habitats.
As the airport owner, we are committed to responsible land ownership and have a system in place to assess and minimise the biodiversity impacts of our operations and development projects such as enhancing the River Crane.
Heathrow’s biodiversity programme is designed to ensure that land is used efficiently and managed with consideration for nature.
Passenger safety is our priority, so to minimise the risk of bird strikes (when a bird hits an aircraft), green spaces within the airport are managed in a way that does not attract birds. For example, we cut grass short and control populations of wild flowers and soil-dwelling insects.
Away from the airfield, we have set aside around 63 hectares specifically for biodiversity conservation. This includes four reserve areas that are open for local people to visit and use for recreation. Our approach to land management has been recognised by the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts Biodiversity Benchmark.
Peter Dorans, Biodiversity Benchmark Manager at the Wildlife Trust said: "We're delighted Heathrow has retained the Biodiversity Benchmark. Extensive and notable work has been carried out to ensure the site thrives as a haven for wildlife.
"To have retained the biodiversity benchmark shows a genuine commitment by BAA for the long term protection and enhanecement of biodiversity."
We are currently reviewing our biodiversity strategy for Heathrow.
Our strategy
We manage biodiversity issues through the following objectives:
1. Minimise bird strike risk
Goal: Identify and manage high risk bird species and their habitats to reduce bird strike risk.
Key actions
- Undertake regular monitoring of bird populations and behaviours
2. Protect and enhance biodiversity on BAA landholdings
Goal: Continuously improve management of high conservation value landholdings, whilst ensuring aircraft safety.
Key actions
- Review Heathrow's biodiversity strategy and action plan
- Incorporate Colne Valley and Spout Lane Lagoon into biodiversity management system
- Enhance public access sites for recreational enjoyment and safety
3. Minimise development impacts
Goal: Maximise the efficient use of land and seek to avoid, reduce, mitigate and compensate significant adverse impacts on biodiversity related to infrastructure developments, in line with benchmarked best practice.
Goal: Incorporate habitat features in new developments where appropriate, to support local green infrastructure.
4. Work with partners on landscape scale
Goal: Work with local and regional partners to improve habitat connectivity and support biodiversity protection and enhancement on a landscape scale.
Key actions
- Communicate Heathrow’s biodiversity performance to staff and local community.
- Continue investment in partnership with local authorities and conservation and community groups.
