Sensible Ecological Survey Solutions Chester Road, Walton, Warrington, Cheshire Discharge of Ecology Planning Conditions 15-20 For: Elan Homes, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire Prepared by: Dr David Bell Sensible Ecological Survey Solutions Ltd. Registered Address: 1 Red Gables Pepper Street Appleton Thorn WARRINGTON WA4 4SB Tel 01925 264208 Email [email protected] Web www.sensibleecologicalsurveysolutions.co.uk Copyright Statement: All Rights Reserved. All material in this document is, unless otherwise stated, the property of Sensible Ecological Survey Solutions Ltd. Reproduction or transmission of the materials in whole or in part, in any manner, without prior consent of the copyright holder, is in violation of copyright law. SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . CONTENTS 1. GENERAL INTRODUCTION 3 Relevant Planning Conditions 4 2. COMPLIANCE WITH CONDITIONS 7 2.1 Provision for Bats 7 2.2 Provision for Badgers 9 2.3 Provision for Breeding Birds 15 2.4 Wildlife Protection Zone 17 2.5 Habitats Management Plan 21 2 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . 1. General Introduction Warrington Borough Council has granted outline planning approval (Application Number 2014/23334) to Elan Homes for the erection of eleven new dwellings and the conversion of the former Ship Inn and adjacent outbuildings to residential use subject to conditions, at a site referred to as 'Chester Road Walton' to be subsequently referred to as 'the Site' (Figures 1 & 2). Figure 1: Current site plan, with red line indicating redevelopment area. 3 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . Figure 2: Redevelopment Master Plan. Eleven new dwellings plus retention of existing buildings located at site entrance. A total of five planning conditions pertaining to protection or wildlife and nature conservation were set by the LPA; the conditions to be met prior to commencement of works on the site. This report deals with of all the ecology conditions, as listed in the Warrington Borough Council Notice of Decision on Planning Application (Application No. 2014/23334). The conditions are as follows: Condition 15 - BATS Prior to the commencement of development the applicant to submit detailed proposals for the incorporation of features into the scheme suitable for use by roosting bats. Such proposals to be agreed by Warrington Borough council. The proposals shall be permanently installed in accordance with approved details. Prior to the commencement of development the applicant to submit detailed proposals for the incorporation of features into the scheme suitable for use by roosting bats. Such proposals to be agreed by Warrington Borough council. The proposals shall be permanently installed in accordance with approved details. 4 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . Condition 16 - BADGERS No development, including demolition/clearance of the site, shall proceed until an agreed Badger Monitoring and Mitigation strategy has been submitted to and approved by Warrington Borough council. This should include, but not be limited to, details of all monitoring taken place and copies of any necessary Natural England Licenses applied for and Appendix B Method Statement for construction of the February 2014 Urban Green Badger Survey and Mitigation Strategy. Condition 18 - BREEDING BIRDS Prior to the commencement of development a detailed proposal for the incorporation of features into the scheme suitable for use by breeding birds should be submitted to Warrington Borough council. The proposals shall be permanently installed in accordance with approved details. Condition 19 - WILDLIFE PROTECTION ZONE No development shall take place until a Wildlife Protection Plan for Construction has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority. The plan shall include: (a) An appropriate scale plan showing Wildlife Protection Zones, where construction activities are restricted and where protective measures will be installed or implemented; (b) Details of protective measures (both physical measures and sensitive working practices) to avoid impacts during construction; (c) A timetable to show phasing of construction activities to avoid periods of the year when sensitive wildlife could be harmed (such as the bird nesting season or badger breeding season); (d) Persons responsible for: (i) Compliance with legal consents relating to nature conservation; (ii) Compliance with planning conditions relating to nature conservation; (iii) Installation of physical protection measures during construction; (iv) Implementation of sensitive working practices during construction; (v) Regular inspection and maintenance of physical protection measures and monitoring of working practices during construction; (vi) Provision of training and information about the importance of Wildlife Protection Zones to all construction personnel on site. All construction activities shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details and timing of the plan unless otherwise approved in writing by the local planning authority. Condition 20 - HABITATS MANAGEMENT PLAN A habitat management plan shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority prior to commencement of the development. The plan shall include: 5 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . (a) Description and evaluation of the features to be managed; (b) Ecological trends and constraints on site that may influence management; (c) Aims and objectives of management; (d) Appropriate management options for achieving aims and objectives; (e) Prescriptions for management actions; (f) Preparation of work schedule (including a 5 year project register, an annual work plan and the means by which the plan will be rolled forward annually); (g) Personnel responsible for implementation of the plan; (h) Monitoring and remedial/contingency measures triggered by monitoring. 6 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . 2. Compliance with Conditions 2.1 Provision for Bats (Compliance with Condition No. 15) As there are no suitable trees or suitable alternative features on site to accept bat boxes, it is therefore proposed that: A total of six bat tubes are to be installed into the gable end brickwork of selected new build dwellings. The bat tubes to comprise of four 'Schwegler 2FR' bat tubes (Figure 3) to be mounted as two pairs (Figure 4), and a further two 'Schwegler 1FR' bat tubes to be mounted singly. The paired bat boxes to have adjoining walls partitions broken to create linkage between tubes. Figure 3: A 'Schwegler 2FR' bat tube 7 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . Figure 4: Diagram showing typical mounting location of bat tubes within brick work of gable end. A further two bat boxes (Schwegler 2F) to be mounted on the main trunk of the large lime tree at the entrance to the site. The final locations and mounting of the six bat tubes and two tree mounted bat boxes to be completed under the supervision of a suitably qualified ecology professional or 'Ecology 'Clerks of Works (ECoW)'. The ECoW to submit a Statement on completion of works to Warrington Borough Council LPA, to confirm compliance with Condition No. 15. 8 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . 2.2 Provision for Badgers (Compliance with Condition No. 16) Badger Monitoring & Mitigation Statement Introduction & Review of Badger Activity on Site A badger survey completed in February 2014 (Urban Green, 2014) recorded no active setts within the site, or within 30m of the site boundary (Figure 5). An outlier (or subsidiary) sett was recorded on site, but there was no evidence of usage at the time of the survey; a further two setts were recorded within 100m of the site. Signs of badger usage of the site were recorded, including badger tracks, snuffle holes and dung heaps. A follow-up check completed by SESS in October 2014 prior to preparation of this Statement, confirmed that the onsite outlier sett remained unused and there was no evidence of new badger excavations within the site. It is concluded that at the present time there are no active badger setts within the site or within 30m of the site boundary, however badgers may still be entering the site on occasions to forage. 9 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . Figure 5: Location of badger activity within and around the site in February 2014 (Figure extracted from Urban Green, 2014) 10 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton . Assessment of Level of Risk to Badgers The current level of risk from the proposed development to active badgers setts is assessed as negligible; the level of risk to badger individuals entering the site in the absence of "Reasonable Avoidance Measures" (RAMs) is assessed as low. The loss of foraging opportunities within the site to the local badger clan is assessed as insignificant; although scattered badger scuffle holes are present the general levels of badger activity within the site are low. It is therefore concluded that an application to Natural England for licensed Badger Mitigation measures is not required as active setts are not at risk, however, Reasonable Avoidance Measures (RAMs) are required to reduce the risk of harm or death to badgers during the construction phase of the development. 'Reasonable Avoidance Measures' to protect badgers during the Construction Phase The RAMs should focus on 1) exclusion of badgers from the site during the entire construction period, or if this cannot be reasonable achieved that 2) measures that can be taken to discourage badgers from entering the site and steps than can be taken to prevent harm or entrapment if them do enter the site. Urban Green (2014) prepared an extensive list of RAMs (Figure 6) which are fully endorsed by the current author subject to the following comments: Erection of Protective Boundary Fencing: The erection of badger proof fencing around the total perimeter of the site is subject to negotiation with the development contractors and unlikely to be realistic. Rather erection of badger proof fencing is likely to focus on the interfaces with the mature woodland to the southern and eastern boundaries of the site where its effectiveness is expected to be greatest. Otherwise the Urban Green stated RAMs should be implemented in full. 11 SESS November 2014 Chester Road, Walton .