A website that caters for the building trade is reporting that a Derbyshire based ecological consultancy is suing Kent developers for over £40,000. Apparently plans for a new hotel complex at Wrotham have stalled, resulting in a dispute between the...

With many development projects being put on hold, I wonder how many other professional ecologists will start to feel the pinch? The full cost of development based ecological survey work can often be very high. This is a particular issue when European Protected Species such as great crested newt are involved. It is advisable for prospective developers to fully discuss their proposals with an ecologist so the true costs of a project can be established. In many cases a relatively low cost scoping survey (or risk assessment) will enable an ecologist to advise a developer what the full costs of a project may be. In rural counties such as Kent where many species are very widely distributed, the need for full consultation is even more important. 

As a relatively small business, Calumma Ecological Services is able to offer more flexible pricing policies than some of our larger competitors. Although the business has certainly seen a decline in new project work, it is clear that many of our more savvy clients are ensuring that issues such as protected species surveys are undertaken in a timely manner. Once the economy starts to recover, the last thing that a developer will want is unnecessary planning delays caused by incomplete survey assessments.