Ecological Reports – Why Are They Important And Why Might I Need One?
Ecological reports can be incredibly crucial to the planning of any development. In essence, an ecological survey will classify and map any wildlife habitats as well as identifying any flora and fauna currently located on site.
Ecological Reports
There are many reasons why an ecological report should be completed at an early stage, including the following:
- They may be a requirement of the local planning authority – when talking to your local authority, they will require an ecological appraisal of any commercial development or any development above a certain size. Please do liaise with your authority at the earliest opportunity, to find out what might be needed.
- You may need to allow for additional costs or resources that have a positive impact on biodiversity – the National Planning Framework stipulates that any development should have a positive impact on the biodiversity of any area. An ecological survey, conducted at an early stage, will be your baseline measurement for this. The ecologist may also be able to suggest ideas once the survey has been completed.
- Any endangered species will be highlighted – as an example, should bats roost on your property, you may only be alerted to their presence by an ecological survey. A specialist bat survey can then be carried out to provide you with more information.
- Any dangerous or invasive species will be highlighted – again, as an example, your ecological report may highlight the presence of Japanese knotweed. This invasive weed can damage any property, fencing or hard paving that you may have on site. By being notified of its presence, a specialist surveyor can be brought in to arrange any treatments needed.
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Ecological surveys can be costly and may take time to arrange. However, the most cost and time-effective method is to have one completed at the start of your development, to highlight any potential issues and to allow you to budget for any biodiversity or habitat mitigation you may need to put in place. Please contact ProHort to find out more about our range of ecological surveys, and how they may help with your development.