European protected species | Business as usual?
Posted in:
Protected Species
Date posted: 2 January 2020
Hazel Dormouse – a European Protected Species (EPS) | © Alar Ecology
The Conservation (Natural Habitats &c.) Regulations 1994 implemented EC Directive 92/43/EEC, otherwise known as The Habitats Directive. This has been law since 1994 and makes it an offence to deliberately:
- kill, capture, or disturb a European Protected Species (EPS); or
- damage or destroy the breeding site or resting place of such an animal.
Over the years the Regulations have been amended; the most recent (consolidated) version being The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.
With the advent of Brexit, the burning question for Ecologists and decision makers is whether this legislation will be repealed. Although many species are also protected by home-grown legislation such as The Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, the Habitats Regulations provide a much higher degree of protection, including provision for the granting of derogation licenses.
The European Protected Species most commonly encountered in a development or land use context are:
- Bats (all species);
- Hazel Dormouse; and
- Great Crested Newt.
The full list of animal species can be found in Schedule 2 of the Regulations here.
Great Crested Newts – a European Protected Species | © Alar Ecology
According to Defra, the 2017 Regulations will continue to apply during the Brexit transition period, i.e. until 31 December 2020. But after this date, amendments currently being drafted will come into force.
So what changes are being proposed?
At the moment, it looks as if there won’t be drastic changes, at least not in the short term. The Conservation of Habitats and Species (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, currently being drafted, do not include substantive changes to the Regulations themselves or to Schedule 2. The amendments are mostly housekeeping changes that will allow the Regulations to continue to function after Brexit. References to EU law, for example, will be removed
According to Defra, the UK Government is committed to maintaining environmental standards, and will continue to honour its international obligations. So, for the time being, it is indeed Business as usual.
Looking further ahead, however, there is considerable uncertainty about what changes to environmental legislation will come forward, especially in view of the Government’s plans to overhaul the planning system in a bid to dramatically increase the number of houses built in the UK. It has also been announced that the UK will not (in all cases) continue to be aligned with EU regulations. Clearly then, it’s probable that in the medium to long term, there will be some changes to the way (and extent that) important habitats and species in the UK are legally protected. But, at this stage, it’s impossible to say what those changes will be.
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