Variation of section 153(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 19902.

After paragraph (z3) of section 153(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (financial assistance for environmental purposes)2 insert—

“z4

a regional land use partnership as defined in section 35(7) of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 20093, so far as its activities relate to the protection, improvement or better understanding of the environment;

z5

any scheme, programme or organisation for the purposes of assessing—

(i)

greenhouse gas emissions from land (including from the use of land),

(ii)

the potential for reducing those emissions;

z6

any scheme, programme or organisation for the purposes of assessing—

(i)

biodiversity supported by land,

(ii)

the potential for improving that diversity;

z7

any scheme, programme or organisation for the purposes of assessing—

(i)

soil quality,

(ii)

the potential for improving the capacity of soil to support life (whether directly or indirectly).”.