Business operations at any location have an impact on microbes, animals, plants and ecosystems. Businesses that adhere to the Biodiversity Compact recognise their accountability to protect the species and habitats they directly control or indirectly influence. When they cease operations in, or divest control of a particular area, they should enable the full restoration of species, habitats and ecosystem services at that location. They should also help and encourage their neighbours, supply chain partners and customers to do likewise. 

Principle 1: Businesses should make provision for the protection and latent restoration of the ecosystems in which they operate or on which they rely. Special attention should be given to those species on which the healthy functioning of the ecosystem relies. 

Principle 2: Businesses should quantify the impacts of their operations and their sphere of influence (including supply chain and customers) on biodiversity. 

Principle 3: When planning new developments or operations at a given location, businesses should seek designs that minimise the costs of adhering to Principle 1 and to the avoidance of operating in virgin habitats. 

Principle 4: Businesses should seek to exceed their obligations under Principle 1. For example, should they operate in ecosystems that are already degraded, they should seek to restore those ecosystems to full health; and they might extend the application of Principle 1 outside of their operations and into their sphere of influence.

Signatories to the BIQ Compact will be acknowledged publicly on the www.biqforum.org web site.