Badgers
Badgers and their setts are protected under the, Protection of Badgers Act 1992. It is an offence to,
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Injure or kill a badger
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Have in your possession a badger whether dead or alive or any part of a badger
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To disturb a badger whilst it is occupying a sett
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To destroy a sett or any part of a sett, or obstruct access to a badger sett.
A badger sett is any place or structure that shows occupation by badgers.
Work that disturbs badgers is illegal without a licence from the relevant authority.
Bats
All species of bat and their resting places are protected by law. It is an offence for anyone to intentionally kill, injure or handle a bat, to possess a bat (whether live or dead), disturb a roosting bat, or sell or offer a bat for sale without a licence. It is also an offence to damage, destroy or obstruct access to any place used by bats for shelter, whether they are present or not.
If there is potential for bats to be present in a building or on a development site subject to proposed works, bat surveys should be carried out to establish whether bats are present.
Great Crested Newts
If your development is located within 500 metres of a pond or a pond is present within your site and the surrounding habitat will be affected, Great Crested Newt Surveys should be carried out. This is particularly the case if good terrestrial habitat (e.g. hedgerows, log piles, woodland, scrub, grassland) is present on your site.
Our team hold Great Crested Newt survey licences and have extensive experience in surveying for newts both in ponds and terrestrial habitat. We can also assess ponds for their suitability using HSI (habitat suitability index) and can use eDNA analysis to establish presence or absence where appropriate.
Reptiles
All UK reptiles are protected by law from intentional (or reckless) injury or killing. Therefore if a potential development site is suitable for reptiles a survey should be carried out to establish presence or absence and if possible population size. If reptiles are present on the site measures to protect them may be necessary, this can include moving the reptiles to a different location.
Protected Species Surveys
Local planning authorities often require evidence that protected species are not harmed by the proposed activity and that biodiversity enhancement and protection measures are in place prior to granting planning consent. These surveys are therefore frequently an integral part of successful planning applications.
We can carry out surveys for all European and nationally protected species including badgers, bats, breeding birds, great crested newts, hazel dormouse, otters, reptiles, water voles and white clawed crayfish. Some of these are described below in more detailed.