Natural Resources Wales publishes third State of Natural Resources Report
Natural Resources Wales (NRW) last week published the 2025 SoNaRR (State of Natural Resources Report), their quinquennial report into the state of the country’s natural resources and the degree to which they are being sustainably managed. The report makes its assessment across eight broad ecosystems, as well as identifying drivers of change and evidence needs. You can read more about the report and its findings here.
CIEEM attended the launch of this, the third edition of SoNaRR, at an event in Cardiff on 29th January. The event was titled Bridges to the Future, referencing the chapter of the same name in SoNaRR 2025, focusing on the actions required to address the issues raised within.
Uncomfortable reading
These issues are expounded upon in the 808-page report, which makes for almost exclusively bleak reading (or, as one panel member understatedly described, “uncomfortable reading at times”). Some of the most significant headlines include: one-in-five species in Wales being at threat from extinction; a continued decline in quantity and quality of habitats across ecosystems, with ecosystem resilience remaining low across most; and the nation’s continued exploitation of natural resources at an unsustainable rate.
“This is not just a warning about the future. It is a reckoning with the present.” – SoNaRR 2025, NRW.
Actions
The Bridges for the Future chapter and eponymous event in Cardiff attempted to strike a more optimistic note by focusing on actions to address the issues above. The central message of Bridges to the Future is to stress the necessity of adopting a systems thinking approach to policymaking in Wales, in order to substantively embed environmental considerations within all areas of Welsh policy. Such an approach reflects the magnitude and pervasiveness of the issues described in the report, issues that have not and cannot be meaningfully addressed merely by tweaking existing environmental policies and regulations; “we cannot regulate our way out of this” as NRW Chair, Neil Sachdev, said during his speech.
The need for coalescence across Welsh government and the wider policy sector in Wales was reflected in the event attendees, with representatives from environmental organisations joined by counterparts from the economy, transport, housing and health industries, a recognition that “no single government, organisation, sector or policy can fix this alone.”
The Bridges approach would include building on existing cross-cutting legislation, including Wales’ Future Generations Act and upcoming Environment Bill, and creating new pan-sector plans to “cross” each of the five bridges:
1) Redesign everyday systems
2) Restore nature as essential infrastructure
3) Build a regenerative economy
4) Realign governance for the long-term
5) Deliver a fair transition
You can read more about the bridges here.
CIEEM took part in a workshop session with other attendees following the report launch, identifying opportunities for cross-sector working and formulating policy ideas related to each bridge. These ideas will be collated by NRW representatives and feedback shared in due course.