Ecology Link were approached to provide additional advice to an ongoing badger survey at a school in Loughborough.
There was doubt as to whether two badger setts should be closed under licence, or if there was scope to retain the sett(s). We reviewed the survey data available and the proposed layout for the new extension, to determine if the work could be completed under a disturbance licence instead of a full sett closure. This involved using ground probing radar survey technology, to produce an image of the underground extent of the sett tunnels and chambers.
Conclusive evidence
The results of this survey provided conclusive evidence that the sett closest to the proposed construction area extended towards the site and well within the zone of ground disturbance for construction, so it was not feasible to retain the sett. There was no scope to modify the footprint within the space available. A sett closure licence was applied for and mitigation included creation of a new artificial sett on adjacent land already accessed by the badgers.
