This criterion includes support for core costs and the development of strategies and management plans whose implementation will contribute to the delivery of national goals for biodiversity, geoconservation, landscape or countryside recreation.
NIEA can support core costs to help to secure the continuation and development of organisations that deliver strategic plans which fit closely with NHGP objectives.
Applicants should demonstrate that strategic plans and management plans will improve co-ordination and result in more efficient and effective delivery of goals. NIEA will consider audits or strategies that help local people identify natural resources of importance or assess needs and plan for their management or provision.
NIEA sees local action at a council level as an increasingly important mechanism for delivery of biodiversity targets, particularly within the context of the Review of Public Administration and the Review of Environmental Governance. Councils are eligible to apply for support for a Local Biodiversity Action Plan Officer to develop and implement a Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP). Joint applications for both development and implementation of a LBAP from two or more councils will receive a higher score than those from individual councils and are therefore more likely to receive grant aid support.