Top 10 Money Saving Tips

We've put together 10 top tips on how to reduce your ecology costs when developing a site. By following this advice you should be able to avoid most of the pitfalls.

Choose Your Site Carefully

A site of low ecological value will have far fewer associated ecological costs. The number of surveys required will be less; planning and legal issues fewer; licensing requirements, mitigation and compensation processes probably non-existent; work restrictions and biodiversity impacts minimal.

Manage Your Site

Disused sites soon to become inhabited by wildlife. To ensure that the ecological status of your land is unchanged, it must be carefully managed. Talk to your ecological consultant on how to maintain your site pre-development.

Incorporate ecology at the design stage

Consider ecology early on in the process to reduce ecological impacts and the risk of delays in the planning process. By incorporating existing ecological features mitigation costs can be considerably reduced.

Enhance the value of your site with Ecology

As well as protecting the existing ecology on site, National, regional and local planning policy now requires that you also take ecological enhancement measures. Your ecological consultant can advise on suitable enhancements to your site that won't cost the earth and will help you get through the planning process.

Submit all ecological data to planning in time

Planning Authorities require ecological information at the decision-making stage, in accordance with national, regional and local planning policy.
Failure to submit ecological information is likely to cause costly delays. Failure to consider ecological issues and protected species when developing a site could result in a court case and considerable fines damaging your profits and your reputation.

Listen to your ecological consultant

Your ecological consultant is the expert and is there to find the best ecological solutions in terms of cost and to comply with wildlife law. Getting their advice early in the project can save you time, money and headaches. Ignoring expert advice from your ecologist could lead to criminal offenses being committed.

Plan in time for seasonal surveys

A number of ecological surveys can only be carried out at certain times of the year. It is possible that you may require ecological surveys spread over a period of up to 12 months.

Visit out Ecology Calendar for more information.

Read the ecologists' reports

It is important that you know what is required in the way of surveys and mitigation/enhancement. Ignoring method statements, i.e. the legal requirements for protected species associated with Natural England licensing, can lead to committing criminal offences and the associated fines.