It seems almost routine that the question "what about Great Crested Newts" is asked at almost any development - including rail projects (which is why I am posting this up here). At times they seem to add significant paperwork and delays to project that people would just like done. An there is certain puzzlement at the apparently contradictory empirical evidence that they are endangered and need significant protection, yet at the same time they seem to crop up on just about every major project.
From
Amphibian and Reptile ConservationWhere to find them
Great crested newts are widely distributed throughout lowland Great Britain, and absent from Ireland. In the last century great crested newts have declines across Europe, mainly as a result of pond loss and deterioration.
Protection
Due to enormous declines in range and abundance in the last century, the great crested newt is strictly protected by British and European law which makes it an offence to: kill, injure, capture or disturb them; damage or destroy their habitat; and to possess, sell or trade. This law refers to all great crested newt life stages, including eggs.
The page includes a map showing that Great Crested Newts have recently been recorded in most 10km squares i the south east of England and heartland and the north east, with significnat pockets around the Lake District and Solway Firth and the scottish lowlands and a smaller pocket around the Moray Firth.
There is a fundraiser on the page inviting you to "Sponsor the Great Crested Newt ... Help safeguard the future of great crested newts, whose habitats are threatened by developments in the
UK▸ ." Been running for a year, but falling well short of its target.
From
the .gov.uk siteWhat you must not do
Things that would cause you to break the law include:
* capturing, killing, disturbing or injuring great crested newts deliberately
* damaging or destroying a breeding or resting place
* obstructing access to their resting or sheltering places (deliberately or by not taking enough care)
* possessing, selling, controlling or transporting live or dead newts, or parts of them
* taking great crested newt eggs
You could get an unlimited fine and up to 6 months in prison for each offence if you’re found guilty.
Activities that can harm great crested newts
Activities that can affect great crested newts include:
* maintaining or restoring ponds, woodland, scrub or rough grassland
* restoring forest areas to lowland heaths
* ploughing close to breeding ponds or other bodies of water
* removing dense vegetation and disturbing the ground
* removing materials like dead wood piled on the ground
* excavating the ground, for example to renovate a building
* filling in or destroying ponds or other water bodies
Building and development work can harm great crested newts and their habitats, for example if it:
* removes habitat or makes it unsuitable
* disconnects or isolates habitats, such as by splitting it up
* changes habitats of other species, reducing the newts’ food sources
* increases shade and silt in ponds or other water bodies used by the newts
* changes the water table
* introduces fish, which will eat newt eggs or young
* increases the numbers of people, traffic and pollutants in the area or the amount of chemicals that run off into ponds
In many cases you should be able to avoid harming the newts, damaging or blocking access to their habitats by adjusting your plans. Contact an ecologist for more information about how to avoid harming the newts.
If you can’t avoid this, you can apply for a mitigation licence from Natural England. You’ll need expert help from an ecologist
