Natural capital opportunities for shooting

The State of Natural Capital Report identifies eight key
ecosystem asset types across England and considers the top five reasons for
their loss and the consequential risks to six key policy areas.

The habitats are:

• marine and coastal margins
• freshwater and wetlands
• woodlands
• mountains, moorlands, and heaths
• semi-natural grasslands
• enclosed farmland
• urban areas.

Among these, shooting has a meaningful impact on all but urban and semi-natural grasslands. The report emphasises the need for investment in natural capital to mitigate biodiversity risks and support a sustainable future. 

If we jump to the six critical policy areas, the shooting community, provides benefits for them all.  

Economic resilience and growth

Shooting plays a significant role in the rural economy, contributing a substantial £2.9 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) annually. 

Shooting is inherently tied to sustainable land use and habitat improvements, which benefits not only biodiversity but also the communities who live and work around these areas. Promoting the benefits of sustainable shooting conducted according to best practice is crucial when engaging with government stakeholders.

Shooting and net zero: contribution to climate action

BASC’s natural capital assessment revealed shooting contributes £227 million worth of carbon sequestration annually through creation and management of woodland, saltmarsh, and wetlands and through carbon saved due to deer and grey squirrel management. These areas, managed through shooting activities, serve as crucial carbon sinks, storing carbon and mitigating climate change.

Moreover, recent research suggests that well-managed grouse moors can contribute to increased carbon storage, further supporting the role of shooting in helping to mitigate climate risks.

Shooting and climate adaptation

The report emphasises the importance of creating and maintaining habitat networks to support climate adaptation. 

Shooting plays a role here as well; for example, land used for pheasant shooting has a higher woodland cover than land without: 15 per cent woodland cover compared with 13.5 per cent of the combined area of woodland and single tree cover without game shooting. It also helps increase habitat connectivity through initiatives such as hedgerow planting, creating corridors for wildlife to thrive in the face of climate change.

Food security

Shooting also contributes to England’s food security by harvesting wild game, notably venison and gamebirds, worth £25 million annually. Furthermore, shooting helps limit crop damage and forestry impacts, saving English farmers and the forestry sector an estimated £37 million and £4 million annually, respectively.

Health and wellbeing benefits

One of the more overlooked benefits of shooting is its positive impact on health and wellbeing. Individuals who participate in shooting are more likely to be physically active and experience reduced levels of loneliness compared to the general public. The resulting positive effects on mental and physical health save the NHS and local authorities £21 million annually. 

Highlighting this contribution supports the case for shooting as a public good that helps reduce healthcare costs while fostering community cohesion.

Water security and flood mitigation

Shooting activities also provide benefits for water security. Managed woodlands linked to shooting activities store up to 19 million cubic meters of water, reducing flood risk by slowing down water movement through landscapes. These benefits further illustrate the positive environmental contributions that can come from sustainable shooting practices. 

Let’s not forget also the miles of drainage channels (grips), put in under previous government policy to increase farmed areas, that have been blocked on grouse moors to keep their peatlands wet.