Ecological Impact Assessment

We have completed a range of Ecological Impact Assessments for complex sites across the UK and are well versed in this elegant and effective method of reporting and assessment.

What is an Ecological Impact Assessment?

An ecological impact assessment (Also known as an environmental impact assessment or an EIA) is designed to identify, quantify and evaluate the potential impact of developments on ecosystems.

The EIA allows local planning authorities to have more information on a site, so they can make more informed decisions regarding granting planning permission and to enable them to impose more appropriate conditions and obligations to mitigate possible negative impacts.

Do I Need an Ecological Impact Assessment?

Typically, this form of assessment is only required for larger development sites, or at sites that have been screened by the local planning authority and have been required to have this kind of assessment to determine the impact of the site upon local ecology.

How Do Ecological Impact Assessments Work?

To prepare for an EIA, we begin by conducting baseline surveys to carefully analyse the likely impacts of your proposal on the local wildlife.

This is a step-by-step process starting with each ecological feature at the site – known as a receptor- being assigned a value relating to its nature conservation status, such as European Protected Species or ‘habitat of principal importance for the conservation of biodiversity’. The importance of the site for each receptor is then given on a geographical scale from ‘negligible value’ through to ‘international value.

Any receptor for which the site is above ‘local value’ will be considered further in the assessment process and the potential effects of the development will be characterised. Where the effect is considered to be significant, mitigation will be proposed to reduce the effect to an acceptable level.

This is a very simplified description aimed to give you the broadest of outline on what is a very thorough process.

This form of assessment would not normally require more survey effort in the field but will require a formal assessment process of potential impacts of both the construction and operational phases of your development.

The principals of an ecological impact assessment are set out in documents published by the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management and are available to view here.

If you would like a full discussion on the technical aspects of an ecological impact assessment, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team.