The logics of biodiversity accounting in the UK public sector

The scope of biodiversity accounting has continued to grow in recent years. This has attracted the attention of researchers that have mostly explored biodiversity accounting in the corporate context. However, the pressure to account for biodiversity, and loss, is not just limited to corporate entities. This paper therefore examines the use of contemporary biodiversity accounting practices in the public sector. The paper does so through an examination of semi-structured interviews with participants across four UK councils, and by applying an institutional logics framework finds that attempts to develop biodiversity accounting are affected by the presence of competing institutional logics. In this specific case, the paper highlights the economic/ecological value conflict in council biodiversity accounting.