A Preliminary Ecological Appraisal, or
PEA, is the initial scoping assessment of an area of land, for its potential to
support protected species, based on the habitats it supports and signs of protected
species. PEA’s are required to inform
what further surveys for protected species are required, as part of the
planning process. The aim of a PEA is to
gather as much information about the site and the surrounding area, so that the
potential impacts of the proposed development on designated sites for nature
conservation, protected species and habitats can be assessed. This is achieved through a two-part process:
a desk study and a Phase 1 habitat survey.
A desk study involves obtaining historical
ecological records, so that, as an ecologist, you can assess the likelihood of
protected species being present on site and the impacts of the development on
ecologically important sites and habitats in the surrounding area. By contacting the local biodiversity records
centre, records can be obtained (usually no more than 10 years old) within at
least 1 km radius of the site. The data
search will provide you with a list of statutory and non-statutory designated
sites and a list of protected, notable and invasive species, with a 4 or 6
figure grid reference.
The next step is to visit the site and conduct a Phase 1 habitat survey. It is important that prior to visiting any site that you have permission from the land owner to be on site and you have a full risk assessment in place. A Phase 1 habitat survey provides a ‘snapshot’ of the current conditions of the site and is a technique used by ecologists to map habitats and record species as a baseline for further survey work, in accordance with Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) guidelines ‘Handbook for Phase 1 Habitat Survey’. These guidelines list the different habitats, which can be found in the UK and a definition for each habitat. Ecologist can use these guidelines to effectively identify which habitats are present on site. Once identified, the habitats need to be outlined in a map to provide a visual representation of the site.
The JNCC handbook also provides a key for each habitat type with their own colour coding, making mapping the habitats transparent and consistent. The objective of a Phase 1 habitat survey is to also record the dominant flora and signs of protected species present on site. The ecologist can then assess the site for its potential to support protected species. For instance, kidney vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria) could be recorded on a calcareous semi-improved grassland which could attract breeding small blue butterflies (Cupido minimus) which are a species of principal importance. Even though the small blue butterfly may not be recorded during the survey, the site itself has potential to support them. Similarly, it is important to record any features, which could support protected species such as log piles or woodpecker holes in a tree. These should be noted as a target note on the map. Further information on what a Phase 1 habitat survey is can be found on our website.
The final step in the process is to present your findings to the client in a report and inform them of any further survey work, recommendations and mitigation, that are required. If the site has potential to support protected species, then further protected species surveys are required to fully establish if protected species are present and whether they will be impacted on by the proposed development. The results of these further surveys and subsequent assessment are required to inform the planning application. Further information on protected species ecology and survey courses can be found on our website.
I can’t believe it’s over already! This week has flown by.
We have a super group of students. They all have skills to bring to the week
and it’s been great getting to know everyone. They are an inquisitive lot,
always asking questions, which is fantastic. That is what Core Week (and the
whole course) is about. Learning!
They’ve come a long way in 5 days. On Monday they learned what a Phase 1 habitat survey was, and this morning they have been out to a site to do a full Preliminary Ecological Appraisal, finding and correctly identifying a whole range of field signs and plant species.
As I write this, they are all back in the training room,
starting to put their survey findings into a report.
Over the week we have been out looking for dormice and reptiles. We’ve surveyed a main badger sett and left camera traps up for a couple of nights (no luck this time). Last night, after a meal at the pub, we sat in wait for bats to leave the roost. We saw five bats emerge and fly around the building. The detector we left out revealed 3 species were in the area overnight. On our field trips we have found a variety of bird pellets, lots of tracks and signs and had lots of fun sniffing poo!
Having fun during the Preliminary Ecological Appraisal!
I can say on behalf of all the staff and tutors that we have
really enjoyed this week, and we hope that all our 2019 students have too.
We are really excited to see how this group get on this
summer. I am sure they will go a long way!
Jess
You can see what our placement students get up to this
summer by checking reading their blog posts which we will post over the summer.
Hmm, what’s this?Just checking our maps are right!Found a juvenile slow worm!What made this nest?
Hannah is the Assistant Ecologist in the Bristol Branch of Acorn Ecology. Hannah started out volunteering in the office. With a boost from the Certificate Course she then was taken on as a seasonal ecologist and is now permanent. Hannah is just one of the many success stories from our Certificate Students. Here she writes about how she got to where she is now.
At the beginning
From a young age, I always knew that I wanted to work with
wildlife but didn’t know exactly what jobs were out there and what I needed to
do to end up working in one. I knew that I wanted to help animals, have a job
that was interesting and variable and the chance to work outdoors. I dabbled
with the idea of veterinary nursing, wildlife education, working in an animal
sanctuary and working as a ranger or warden on a wildlife reserve.
Gaining an education
An exciting education!
Even without having an ultimate goal, I always knew that education
would be a vital thing for me to have and that for many of the career options
that I was considering, a degree was a necessity. Knowing this, I decided to
undertake a Bachelor of Science
degree in Conservation Biology.
This degree allowed me to gain practical and theoretical knowledge in the
field of conservation and improve upon my ability to study independently. I was
also able to build up transferable skills such as report writing, research and
the ability to analyse, assess and critique my own work. During my degree I decided
to undertake a placement year to gain more practical experience within the
field. For this placement I spent ten months working within the Peruvian rainforest
monitoring wildlife such as camains, macaws and giant river otters and
assisting PhD students with data collection. This was a challenging and
demanding yet incredible role that taught me about the practical and physical elements
of field work and researching and made me fall in love with wildlife even more.
When leaving university I felt that I had a good understand
of theoretical elements of conservation and biology as well as knowledge on
different ecosystems and the conservation methods put in place to protect them.
I knew that this degree could help me move into areas such as local or international
conservation, research, academia or even areas such as wildlife film making.
However, I also knew that in the majority of careers, employers were looking
for more than just a degree and that I would have more success in my long term career
once I had gained some more practical experience.
Voluntary work
Learning bird skills with the RSPB
After graduating in 2014, I spent the next few years in a
range of voluntary positions in the fields of ecology and conservation. These
positions ranged from carrying out turtle conservation in Costa Rica to
carrying out habitat management on an RSPB reserve in the UK. All of these
positions were invaluable to me and not only gave me a wealth of knowledge and experience
but allowed me to focus and concentrate more on what career I ultimately wanted
to go into by trying out different roles.
It is worth noting that volunteering is unpaid and not
everyone is in the position to take weeks or even months off to gain this
experience. However there are often ways to volunteer that are not time
consuming and can be worked around a full time job. It is worth contacting wildlife
trusts and local wildlife groups that often run plant and wildlife monitoring
schemes that volunteers can get involved in and simply drop in on the odd days
that you are free. Local bat groups often run a variety of activities from bat hibernation
checks to activity surveys. It is possible to find programmes that run on
weekends and always worth looking into voluntary bat monitoring which will normally
be carried out at dusk or dawn and for most people can be carried out outside
of normal work hours.
Certificate in
Ecological Consultancy
After spending time volunteering in several different job
roles within ecology and conservation, I was able to make the decision that I
wanted to move into ecological consultancy.
Hannah working hard, volunteering
I knew that this job would be exciting and variable and would present an opportunity for continuous growth and learning within the field. Although I had experience in the general field of ecology, I still lacked the specific UK knowledge of ecological survey techniques, legislation and planning applications required to give professional advice on the impacts on wildlife from developments projects. I searched for professional ecological courses and foundCertificate in Ecological Consultancy. It was an eight month course that covered vital topics and skills such as how to carry out Phase 1 habitat surveys, how to write Preliminary Ecological Appraisals and information on a variety of protected UK species. The course is run as a mixture of classroom and field based courses, online classes, optional courses and marked assignments which allow you to cover everything that you need to know when starting out in ecology consultancy. Wanting to get the most out of this experience as possible, I also signed up for the optional four week placement which would be carried out at the Bristol Office. This placement would involve essential on-the-job training and allow me to immerse myself in the field of consultancy and see what was really involved. After signing up for the Certificate course and placement I was keen to start learning as soon as possible. I contacted Steph, the Bristol Branch Manager and enquired to see if there would be any possibility of me volunteering ahead of my placement. To my delight, she arranged a casual meeting at the office to run over my past experience, my suitability and to see what work I could get involved with at the office. We organised for to come in one day a week and help out her and Jo (an ecologist in the office) with surveys and report writing.
Starting in a
consultancy
One of the first surveys that I went out on was a Phase 1 Habitat survey. This survey involves visiting a site and assessing what habitats are present, what species are on the site and what potential there is for protected species such as bats and badgers to be using the site. I was amazed by the amount of knowledge that you needed to have to carry out one of these surveys and how much Steph and Jo could decipher from a site. Walking around what looked to me like an ordinary field; Steph was able to list off 30 or more plant species as well as signs of badgers and potential habitats for bats and dormice. I felt quite daunted by how little I knew in comparison but was excited for the opportunity to start learning. Over the next few months I went out on more and more surveys and was soon able to understand different surveys methods as well as how to interpret data and how to use wildlife legislation to decide what outcomes are required for different projects. Working within the office also allowed me to gain valuable experience in seeing how reports were written, how electronic data was obtained and what kinds of queries and questions were normally received from clients. The work was incredibly varied. We would speak with homeowners planning a small loft extension in one phone call and nuclear power stations who were carrying vegetation clearance in the next call. Each case would present its own unique features that required consideration and thought. There is no real typical week in this field and the opportunities to learn are endless.
Job offers
The Acorn Ecology dormouse course
After spending several months undertaking the Certificate in Ecological Consultancy and volunteering part-time within the office, I felt that I had enough experience to begin looking for jobs. In ecology, most survey work is seasonally constrained to the summer months. Due to this, many companies increase their staff workforce over these months and it is common for people to start their ecological careers as temporary field surveyors. It is worth keeping an eye out for jobs around February onwards as companies begin searching for new recruits. I was lucky enough to receive several job offers including one from Acorn Ecology as a temporary assistant ecologist. Every company will offer a different experience. Larger companies may require large amounts of travelling and the opportunity to gain field experience in a range of habitats, whereas smaller companies may offer survey work that is closer to home and more time within the office gaining experience with reporting.
As a side note, it is worth stating that for every
consultancy, one thing that is necessary is a car and I found myself having to
buy one before being offered any work. Consultancies will require you to be
able to drive to sites to meet clients and carry out surveys. Bicycles can be
impractical due to the long distances we are often required to travel and the
amount of equipment that we need to take and public transport is inadequate due
to the remote locations of many sites and the unsociable hours that surveys are
often carried out in. When first asking to volunteer with Acorn Ecology, I did
not own a car and made it a priority to purchase one over the next few months
in order to be able to carry out surveys independently.
Working as an
Assistant Ecologist
Having been offered a seasonal job with Acorn Ecology I was
happy to accept the position and excited to increase my hours and become even
more involved in projects that the company was working on. Going from part-time
to full-time was a big jump and I immediately found that I was much more useful
as I was present at every stage of a project from the initial client contact to
the survey work and reporting and had a much better understanding of how these
processes worked. This understanding was crucial when meeting with clients or
contractors. They would often have many questions about our work, our
time-scales and what outcome we predicted for their site.
Most people are fairly interested in the work that we do and
I have met people who are quite excited to find rare and interesting species
within their land. However, for many people, the news that they have protected
species on their land is very unwelcome. In these cases the work that we do is
seen as an inconvenient delay to their project and we are sometimes met with
negative attitudes. In these moments, good people skills can often help diffuse
unpleasant situations. Clients may have a limited understanding of wildlife and
wildlife legislation and can become frustrated by unexpected delays or changes
to their project. It is worth reminding people that you are trying to assist
them and that it is part of your job to ensure that their planning permission
and project go through smoothly by ensuring they do not breach any wildlife
legislation. Often people are more understanding when can appreciate the
significance of the bat roost or dormouse nest on their land and the reasoning
behind your recommendations. However, in this job you should be prepared for
the fact that you will not be everybody’s favourite person. It is important
therefore to have confidence in your knowledge and decisions and to know that
you will have backing from the law and your colleagues when you need it.
You need to love being outside!
In my first season in ecology, I found my colleagues to be a
tremendous support to me, taking the time to train me and having the patience
and kindness to guide me through the beginning of my career. In this role you
will spend a lot of time working very closely with your colleagues, often
spending a weeks at a time in shared accommodation working on projects far away
from home. It is important that you all have good relationships and trust and
respect each other as the work can be tiring and demanding. When you are on
your 7th bat survey in a row and are climbing over barbed wire
fences in the middle of the night carrying chairs and detectors halfway across
a field it is good to know that you can at least have a laugh with the person
that you are working with and that you are all in it together.
Gaining a permanent
position
After reaching the end of my first season, I unfortunately
had to be let go over the winter due to the lack of survey work available at
the time. Again, this is quite common and people will often spend one or two
years in a temporary position before a company is able to offer them permanent
work.
Steph felt that as I had already spent six months working
full time for the company I had a good understanding of how the office was run
and had built up a good rapport with her and Jo and offered me a permanent
position starting the next March, which again, I happily accepted.
Working within a small company gives unique benefits and I
am able to be heavily involved with many parts of running a branch and am able
to get a well rounded experience as an ecologist. Over the last year I have
gained a vast amount of specific ecological knowledge as well as the experience
in the practical elements of surveying and organisational skills required to
carry this surveying out successfully. I consider myself very fortunate to have
been in the right place at the right time when it came to finding the course in
ecological consultancy and applying for both my voluntary and paid work.
However, I also recognise and am proud of the amount of work that I have had to
do get into this position. Getting into ecological consultancy can take time and
a great amount of effort but it is an incredibly rewarding and satisfying
career and I look forward to the continued opportunities for growth that I know
it will offer me.
