When Firm Boundaries Meet Planetary Boundaries: Examining Corporate Land Use and Local Biodiversity With a Metacoupling Perspective

We investigate the collective interactions between corporate land use and biodiversity using the lenses of the metacoupling framework. Focusing on corporations in English and Welsh local councils between 2014 and 2019, we find that land use by intensive land use corporations is associated with reduced local species richness through intracoupling processes and causes negative outward spillover interactions with species richness in neighbouring areas via pericoupling processes. These intra- and pericoupling effects are stronger for ectotherms, small-bodied, and low‑dispersal species. We also find telecoupling effects where declines in ectotherms, terrestrial species, small-bodied species, and low-dispersal species richness intensify when local councils are part of the neighbouring, regional, and national road and rail network. International connections via seaports and airports are associated with reduced endotherm richness. By adding a spatial dimension to the analysis, this study outlines the importance of tracing the impacts of corporate activities beyond their conventional firm boundaries.