GUIDELINES FOR ECOLOGICAL REPORT WRITING

Second Edition

December 2017

Contents

1. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................................2. DIFFERENT TYPES OF REPORT FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES..........................................................................................3. GENERAL ADVICE ........................................................................................................................................................4. MAKING A START..........................................................................................................................................................5. GENERIC CHECKLIST FOR REPORT STRUCTURE ........................................................................................................... Title Page........................................................................................................................................................... Summary............................................................................................................................................................ Acknowledgements............................................................................................................................................ List of Contents, Figures, Tables and Appendices............................................................................................... IntroductionandTermsofReference................................................................................................................. Methodology/Methods...................................................................................................................................... Results................................................................................................................................................................ DiscussionandAnalysisofResults..................................................................................................................... OtherSections.................................................................................................................................................... Recommendations............................................................................................................................................. Conclusions........................................................................................................................................................ References.......................................................................................................................................................... Appendices.........................................................................................................................................................6. COMMON PITFALLS......................................................................................................................................................7. OTHER USEFUL GUIDANCE...........................................................................................................................................APPENDICES..................................................................................................................................................................... Appendix A - Template for Preliminary Ecological Appraisal Reports................................................................ Appendix B - Template for Ecological Impact Assessment Reports...................................................................

ACKnoWLeDGeMents

The Professional Standards Committee would like to acknowledge the members of the working group who undertook the review of the Institute’s previous publication on ecological report writing (Professional Guidance Series No. 9) and who were instrumental in bringing forward these new guidelines as a replacement to that original document. They include: Phil Baarda, Jessica Batchelor, Mick Hall, Pauline Holmes, Mike Dean, Richard Graves, Lisa Kerslake, Mike Oxford, Charlotte Phillips and Sue Swales.

this document should be referenced as:CIEEM (2017) GuidelinesonEcologicalReportWriting. Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management, Winchester.

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1. IntRoDUCtIon1.1. The ability to provide objective, relevant, accurate, fair and impartial information and advice is enshrined

in the Institute’s Code of Professional Conduct (the Code) and is an essential requirement if members are to demonstrate their competence and professionalism. Good report writing is therefore an essential skill for professional ecologists and environmental managers.

1.2. A well-written report is succinct, serves the purpose for which it is intended, is tailored to the requirements of the reader and answers the brief agreed with the client. It should inspire the reader’s confidence in the content, it should avoid any misunderstanding, and minimise the risk of unintended financial or legal consequences. The intention with these guidelines is to provide a framework for the preparation of a good report.

1.3. This guidance is based on established good practice and aims to ensure:a. Ease of access to readily available information;b. Content and structure serve the intended purpose (i.e. contains all necessary information in a logical

format);c. Transparency and clarity throughout and justification for robust recommendations and conclusions.

2. DIFFeRent tYPes oF RePoRt FoR DIFFeRent PURPoses2.1. From the outset, it is important to identify the purpose of the report and to then decide on the most appropriate

format that will best serve that purpose.

2.2. The type of report required will vary depending on the client and their specific needs, and on a project by project basis. For example, the report may cover a single survey for one particular species or be a full ecological assessment involving multiple, detailed species and habitat surveys, accompanied by an assessment of likely impacts, with details of necessary mitigation measures.

2.3. Table 1 provides a list of common types of report along with a description of the purpose each is intended to serve. To accompany the table, two templates are provided in Appendix A and B of these guidelines that set out the structure and format that is considered to be good practice when preparing Ecological Impact Assessment (EcIA) Reports and Preliminary Ecological Appraisal Reports (PEARs) (for the latter see CIEEM’s Technical Guidance Series (TGS) Guidelines for Preliminary Ecological Appraisal on the Institute’s website).

2.4. Some clients, such as national and local highway agencies/authorities and Network Rail may already have a preferred structure and format for reports to be submitted to them (e.g. as set out respectively in the Design ManualforRoadsandBridges (DMRB) and the GuidetoRailInvestmentProcess (GRIP)). Otherwise, under normal circumstances where a report is intended to inform some stage of the planning and development process, ecological reports should be based on the templates provided in Appendix A and B of these guidelines.

2.5. These guidelines provide general advice applicable to the majority of reports. However, for detailed guidance on undertaking and reporting on Ecological Impact Assessments (EcIAs), see CIEEM’s Guidelines for Ecological Impact Assessment on the Institute’s website.

The Importance of Proportionality

2.6. It is important to remember that the structure and content of a report should be proportionate to the predicted degree of risk to biodiversity and to the nature and scale of the proposed development. Consequently, report authors should only provide information that is relevant, necessary and material to the purpose identified, while at the same time ensuring that adequate details are provided for the intended reader and/or audience e.g. in the case of an EcIA Report, a local planning authority (LPA). Likewise, all decision-makers should apply a proportionate approach to the information that they request.

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Table 1. Examples of different types of ecological report and their purpose

Report Type Description/PurposeSurvey and Research ReportsEcological Survey (e.g. Habitat Survey) Provides the results of an ecological survey, such as a

habitat or a badger survey. The report will include a description of the methods used as well as the detailed results of the survey, and interpretation/assessment of the results. These reports are normally used to inform one of the reports listed under ‘Assessment’. They may be submitted as part of a planning application e.g. as an appendix to an EcIA report or the ecological chapter of an Environmental Statement (see below). Ecological Survey reports should follow the structure set out in Section 5 below.

Research Report Provides the results of a piece of research, such as may be commissioned by a Statutory Nature Conservation Organisation (SNCO). A specific structure may be provided in such cases by the client. Alternatively, preparation of such reports may follow the guidance in Section 5 below.

Ecological Monitoring Report(As distinct from a monitoring strategy – see below)

Provides the results of post-construction monitoring for a development project as a ‘snap shot’ at a particular period in time, as required by a planning condition/obligation or by a protected species licence. The report will include a description of the methods used as well as the detailed results of the survey, and interpretation/ assessment of the results. Preparation of the monitoring report should, where appropriate, follow the guidance on report structure set out in Section 5 below. The appropriate content of such a report is set out in BS42020 clause 11.2.3.4.A monitoring ‘report’ is distinct from an ecological monitoring ‘strategy’. The former provides only the methods and results of monitoring, along with their interpretation (often collected at prescribed periods after the completion of works). Whereas, the full strategy provides an agreed set of aims and objectives for monitoring and comprehensive details about how monitoring will be undertaken and reviewed (see ‘Ecological Monitoring Strategy’ below under ‘Other Common Types of Ecological Report’).

Assessment ReportsPreliminary Ecological Appraisal Report (PEAR) Provides the results of initial ecological surveys associated

with a proposed development. The report is used to identify further ecological surveys necessary to inform an EcIA (see below), to identify ecological constraints to a project and make recommendations for design changes, and to highlight opportunities for ecological enhancement. It can be used as a scoping report (for non-EIA projects), but should not be submitted as part of a planning application unless it can be determined that the project would have no significant ecological effects, no mitigation is required and no further surveys are necessary; with the exception of such cases it should be superseded by an EcIA report (see below). The PEAR should follow the structure set out in Appendix A of these guidelines.

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Ecological Impact Assessment (EcIA) Report - non-EIA Assesses the impacts of a non-EIA development proposal on ecological features, clearly identifying any ‘significant effects’ as well as impacts on any designated sites or protected species, and detailing both the mitigation measures required, and how these will be secured. An EcIA Report will be submitted as part of a planning application where it has been determined that a formal EIA is not required. It should follow the structure set out in Appendix B of these guidelines. For development projects affecting only a single species/group (such as where a barn conversion requires an assessment in relation to bats) the report accompanying the application will comprise an EcIA Report. As such, it should therefore have the same content as that set-out in Appendix B, although the structure can be modified to delete unnecessary sections, or to combine sections where appropriate i.e. it should be proportionate.

Ecology or Biodiversity Chapter(s) of an Environmental Statement (EcIA for EIA projects)

Where a formal EIA is required the Ecological Impact Assessment will be presented as a chapter of an Environmental Statement (ES). This has the same purpose and content as an EcIA Report (see Appendix B of these guidelines) although the structure is often dictated by an EIA co-ordinator, to ensure consistency across the ES.

Ecological Report (Using a Pro-forma or bespoke template provided by the relevant decision-maker)

For ‘low risk’ small-scale developments, some LPAs may operate a system where ecological information is accepted in the form of a short pro-forma report on a template provided by the council. Such reports have a bespoke structure and format and should only be used in conjunction with a system already in place and operated by the LPA (e.g. Dorset County Council under their Biodiversity Protocol). Use of such a pro-forma does not reduce the need to work in accordance with good practice and in compliance with the Institute’s Code of Professional Conduct.

Statement to Inform the Habitat Regulations Assessment process

Provides the information needed to enable a Habitat Regulations Assessment to be undertaken by a competent authority of the implications of a project in relation to a European Site in view of the site’s conservation objectives. Such reports will have a specific structure and content dependent on their purpose within the HRA process.

Other Common Types of Ecological ReportLandscape and Ecological Management Plan (LEMP) Provides details and specifications for the management

of habitats and other features of biodiversity interest. Normally such reports are prepared in support of a planning application where the LPA requires management as a formal requirement e.g. for biodiversity mitigation, compensation or enhancement purposes. The LEMP may form a part of the information originally submitted with the application (e.g. as part of the EcIA) or its provision and delivery may be secured through planning conditions or obligations. Preparation of the LEMP should, where appropriate, follow the general guidance set out in Section 5 below. The appropriate content of such a report is set out in BS42020 clause 11.1.

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Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) Provides details and specifications for practical measures intended to avoid or minimise adverse effects on biodiversity during the construction process. Normally such reports are prepared in support of a planning application where the LPA requires management as a formal requirement e.g. for biodiversity mitigation, compensation or enhancement purposes. The CEMP may form a part of the information originally submitted with the application (e.g. as part of the EcIA) or its provision and delivery may be secured through planning conditions or obligations. Preparation of the CEMP should, where appropriate, follow the general guidance set out in Section 5 below. The appropriate content of such a report is set out in BS42020 clause 10.2.

Ecological Monitoring Strategy(Effectiveness or Early Warning Monitoring)(As distinct from a monitoring report – see above)

Provides detailed and structured proposals for the preparation of a monitoring strategy, in advance of the commencement of development, which will be used to establish whether proposed mitigation, compensation and enhancement measures have been effective over a specified period. The strategy may also be used to provide early warning of when contingencies and/or remedial measures will be ‘triggered’ in the event that ecological objectives are not being achieved. Implementation of the strategy over time will be informed by periodic ‘Ecological Monitoring Reports’ (see above under ‘Survey and Research Reports’).The strategy may form a part of the information originally submitted with the application (e.g. as part of the EcIA) or its provision and implementation may be secured through planning conditions or obligations. Preparation of the strategy should, where appropriate, follow the general guidance set out in Section 5 below. The appropriate content of such a report is set out in BS42020 clause 11.2.3.4.

BREEAM Report Provides supplementary and summary ecological information in a standardised template format for the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology (BREEAM) Code assessor, in accordance with BRE requirements, to gain credits towards these schemes. This report is typically supported by other ecological reports produced for the site. The report should be prepared or reviewed by a ‘Suitably Qualified Ecologist,’ as defined by BRE.

Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) Provides information enabling an organisation to identify actions that it may take that are necessary to support the conservation and management of particular habitats and/or species. Biodiversity Action Plans (BAPs) may be prepared by both public and private sector organisations, and may be broad and strategic in nature or very specific to one or two habitats or species. The structure and format may need to be bespoke for the organisation in question, but BAPs can be prepared following the relevant parts of the guidance set out in Section 5 below.

European Protected Species Licence Application Provides sufficient information in a bespoke structure and format (i.e. a template) to enable the relevant SNCO to determine applications for a derogation licence where the applicant will then be able to undertake works or activities that would otherwise be in breach of Article 12 of the Habitat Directive (as implemented in the UK and Ireland through domestic legislation e.g. through the Habitat and Species Regulations 2010).

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Proof of Evidence / Witness Statement Provides written evidence to be presented at a Public Inquiry (e.g. appeal inquiry) or Court Hearing (e.g. Judicial Review). Such a report is used to present a case on behalf of one of the parties involved. The size and structure of the ‘report’ will depend on the specific nature of the organisation and issues involved. However, while some of content and format may need to be tailored to the case, much of it may still be prepared following the relevant parts of the general guidance set out in Section 5 below. Such documents are also likely to be written in the first person, as they represent a personal position or opinion.

3. GeneRAL ADVICe 3.1. Keep the intended reader or audience in mind and consider:

• Why is the report needed? Establish the purpose of the report, what it will be used for and who is the target audience. Where possible discuss this in detail with the ‘client’ (person or organisation by who has commissioned the report) so that ‘what needs to be done’ and ‘how best to do it’ can be gauged accurately.

- Where a brief has been agreed with a client, follow the brief unless changes have been subsequently negotiated.

- Following discussion with the client, be prepared to amend initial draft reports to provide additional clarity or to match a house style etc. but take care to maintain the ecological integrity of the report and its recommendations (see Section 1.1 above)

• As well as making clear the purpose of the report, it is also important to establish what it is not. For instance, for a PEAR you might include:

‘Thisreportaimstoprovidegeneraladviceonecologicalconstraintsassociatedwithanydevelopmentofthesiteandincludesrecommendationsforfurthersurvey;itisnotintendedthatthisreportshouldbesubmittedwithaplanningapplicationfordevelopmentofthesite,unlesssupportedbytheresultsoffurthersurveysandadetailedassessmentoftheeffectsoftheproposeddevelopment.’

• Who is going to use it? (e.g. statutory agencies, developers, planners, consultees, members of the public etc.) Note that if a report is going to be submitted with a planning application, it becomes a public document and may be read by a wider audience than anticipated. Any written material submitted to a public body may be subject to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request.

• What does the intended reader or audience hope to get out of the report?• Avoid ‘may’ and ‘possibly’ and provide a definitive statement wherever possible. If this is not possible, state why

language used in the report is only tentative.• What is the level of technical and legal expertise of the intended audience? Ensure appropriate language, style

and format is used relevant to the audience.• What is the intended audience’s attitude to the topic of the report and what is their level of technical and legal

expertise? Tact may be needed if their attitudes are negative!• What decisions are likely to be made as a result of the report? Ensure the implications of this are clearly

understood by the author(s) of the report.• The report may need to include a Letter of Reliance, which developers and house builders often require. Such

letters require the author to vouch for the accuracy of data, though opinions are provided in ‘good faith’. Letters and reports should state that they were ‘produced using all reasonable skill and care’ and should include a ‘signed disclosure’ or ‘declaration of compliance with professional code of conduct’ (see also Clause 6.9 of BS42020).

• The need to: - Avoid repetition; - Cross-reference text to appendices; - Label and reference photographs and other figures and diagrams clearly; - Be consistent with terminology and check accuracy of references and use recognised references; - Ensure proportionality (see 2.6 above).

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3.2. Reports require an objective writing style that conveys information clearly and concisely. They are normally impersonal and written in the third person. Structure and format of the report should be discussed in advance with the client if the report is to be included in a document with contributions from several authors, or is being written for a client with a preferred house-style. Ideally, one author should be selected to act as an overall editor to ensure consistency.

3.3. If an ecological report is going to be incorporated into another large document (e.g. as a chapter in an Environmental Statement), the author/editor of the ES should ensure that the final document retains the main findings and conclusions of the original ecological report(s) without substantial alteration of either its content or meaning. Any significant changes should be justified and made explicitly clear and unambiguous in the final document.

3.4. Where significant differences exist between original and final documents, it is advisable that the author of the original ecological report is given the opportunity to confirm that the changes made do not substantially alter the content and meaning of the original ecological report or omit any key facts or conclusions (see BS42020 clause 6.12). This will ensure consistency with section 1.1. of these guidelines.

3.5. Pages should be clearly numbered and in most cases it is advisable to number all paragraphs. This allows easy cross-referencing, for example in formal meetings or Public Inquiries or over the telephone.

3.6. Headers, footers and footnotes can all be used to assist the reader. They provide a quick means to confirm document title or to identify the document date/version number or they can provide additional commentary or a reference that would otherwise interrupt the flow if included in the main text (see footnote accompanying paragraph 3.9. below).

3.7. Uncommon terms/symbols should be defined where they are first encountered in the text (or provide a glossary if there are many).

3.8. All species should be given common and scientific names (in italics) to avoid confusion. Common names should be used in the text (all in lower case unless the name includes a proper noun e.g. Daubenton’s bat and whiskered bat), either with the scientific name (in italics) immediately following the first time it is mentioned, or with scientific equivalents listed in a table in an appendix. A reference should be made to the source used for nomenclature purposes, and this should be accurate throughout, e.g. the current edition of Stace for higher plants. If you are dealing with groups with shifting taxonomy (e.g. lichens) then authorities are also needed.

3.9. The author should be competent to write, analyse/interpret results and to make recommendations on all aspects covered by the report, or supported by a competent co-author if required. A justification of the competence of the report’s author/co-authors should be provided for EcIA Reports or Ecology/Biodiversity chapters of Environmental Statements (this is a requirement of the 2017 amendment of the EIA Regulations1 in relation to the latter).

3.10. Plagiarism must be avoided and the contributions of others must be fairly acknowledged. To not give adequate recognition for the work of others may be a breach of copyright and result in legal action being taken against those responsible.

Use of Maps and Data

3.11. Maps (e.g. from the Ordnance Survey), online images (e.g. from Google Earth etc.) and online data sources (e.g. from the National Biodiversity Network) should only be used in accordance with relevant terms and conditions and/or copyright and licence obligations.

Note: You must not include reports from the National Biodiversity Network (NBN) without first obtaining written permission from the relevant Data Provider.

Quality Assurance

3.12. Once editing is complete, the draft report should be checked. Sentences can often be read in two completely different ways, leading to misinterpretation, which can be very difficult for the author to pick up. Also, note that spell-checkers will not pick up incorrect words if spelt correctly, e.g. pubic rather than public!

3.13. Ideally, a report should be checked by another competent ecologist. This may be easier in larger organisations, but for small consultancies and sole-traders this can also be done using someone trusted on a reciprocal basis. A sound Quality Assurance protocol should involve: i. Self check by the author e.g. grammar, spelling and readability;ii. Factual check to confirm information is correct, by an appropriate checker (e.g. by a colleague);iii. Approval, to confirm the report meets the client’s brief and is of an appropriate standard (e.g. sign off by

project supervisor as QA control).3.14. A draft for review should then be sent to the client, asking for comments by a specified date or giving a time period

after which a final version will be issued automatically. Reasonable requests for amendments by the client should be made where these are warranted but should not change the integrity of the report (See 1.1. above).

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1 The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Scotland) Regulations 2017The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Wales) Regulations 2017The Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017European Communities (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Agriculture) (Amendment) Regulations 2017

3.15. Details setting out how Quality Assurance has been achieved should normally follow the title page of the report and typically may include:• date of completion of the report prominently displayed and date of survey work, particularly if significantly

different e.g. a year or two earlier;• statement that the report has been prepared in accordance with these guidelines;• declaration of compliance with relevant codes of professional practice;• details of quality assurance (see 3.13. above).

4. MAKInG A stARt4.1. Remember you need to cover:

• Why the report is being written;• Who has done the work or been involved;• What was done, and;• Where, how and when it was done.

Ensure you have defined the purpose of your report first so that you use an appropriate report structure and format (see Table 1.).

4.2. An outline structure for the report should be prepared with reference to the checklist headings in Section 5 below. Also, where appropriate, the author should:• Read notes and analyse field data. • Pull together related ideas/results.• Assemble digital images to be used in the report; these can act as points of reference and they are valuable for

illustrating the text.• Select images carefully and ensure the title/description matches. Photographs may be more open to

interpretation by third parties than text. • Make use of additional sub-headings where appropriate.• Ensure headings are in a logical order, to meet the brief and purpose of your report.• Separate essential material for the main body of the report from material that should be put into appendices.• Draw out main conclusions before starting to write.• Avoid long blocks of ‘cut and paste’ generic text such as detailed descriptions of legislation for all species

investigated, whether or not found to be present. Text should be tailored to the topic of the report and information should only be included if it is relevant and later referred to in the discussion, recommendations or conclusions.

5. GeneRIC CHeCKLIst FoR RePoRt stRUCtUReNot all sections or headings suggested here will be required for all reports, and some report types require different headings.

Title page

5.1. The title should indicate the subject matter exactly and as concisely as possible. It should be unambiguous and not easily confused with other reports dealing with other ecological matters. Wherever possible, the purpose should form part of the title e.g. Preliminary Ecological Appraisal for Freda Smith’s Site at Blogsville or ‘Ecological Impact Assessment for Fred Blog’s Land’.

5.2. In addition, the title page should include:• the clients name/details;• date of the report (and version of document where relevant e.g. where more than one version of the document

has been produced);• any classification e.g. consultation draft, confidential (with reasons justified in the text which follows);• author’s(s’) name(s).

Summary

5.3. It is advisable to prepare the summary last. Some readers may only read your summary, so it is important that it is self-contained, self-explanatory and captures the essence of your report. Normally it should be less than a page long and may even be limited to one or two paragraphs. Short reports of three or four pages may not need a summary.

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5.4. The summary should contain:• the purpose of the report including the client’s brief where appropriate;• an introduction to the key issues;• a brief description of the work undertaken for the report;• a summary of the report’s recommendations, and;• the report’s conclusions.

Acknowledgements

5.5. Any significant help should be acknowledged. If other people’s research, results or ideas are quoted or used in the text, they should be referenced by bibliographic citation. See section 3.10 on copyright and intellectual property rights.

5.6. Typically the author should acknowledge:• names/organisations of specialist sub-contractors, expert volunteers etc. (indicating clearly the extent of their

contributions);• names of persons with whom they have had useful discussions;• those who have provided financial support; • those who have loaned equipment/software; and/or• those who have given in-kind help.

List of contents, including figures, tables and appendices

5.7. List section numbers and short but meaningful headings together with their associated page numbers. Use a hierarchy of numbered sections and subsections, e.g. section 1, subsections 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 etc.

5.8. Provide a separate list of figures and their page numbers if necessary. Figures and tables should be numbered sequentially; where there are multiple figures or tables used they should be numbered as they appear in each chapter (e.g. Fig. 1.1, 1.2 etc. in Chapter 1).

Introduction and Terms of Reference

5.9. The purpose of the report must be clearly stated, including any brief given to you by your client.5.10. 5et the scene and describe what was known at the start of the project. Try to ensure the client provides all relevant

information on the proposed works/project to enable appropriate recording, discussion and/or accurate impact assessment at a later date. Giving a concise but accurate summary of the information provided by the ‘client’ enables the reader to understand the context of your work. Later changes to the context can then be picked up by the reader. For example, the design of a development scheme may change after an ecological survey has been completed. The need for further survey work to take account of the additional impacts is not always addressed by the developer.

5.11. Set the context within which the report has been written. Is it:• Stand alone;• To be combined with other reports;• To be submitted with a planning application;• Does it supersede previous reports etc.?

5.12. Summarise the scope and limitations of the investigation (this should be in accordance with BS42020; Clause 6.7). The limitations might include time of year, weather conditions, lack of time or other resources, access, etc. These should be covered in more detail in the methodology section.

5.13. Provide any cross-references to other relevant documents, such as drawings showing development design or landscape planting; other relevant temporal and spatial information; earlier ecological reports (e.g. PEARs); scientific background (e.g. for the latest distribution of invasive species); and relevant legislation or planning policy, etc.

5.14. Provide details of any consultation undertaken in relation to the report or project and refer to the outcomes later in the report.

Methodology/Methods

5.15. In this section you should describe:• who carried out the work;• where it took place;• when it took place;• what work was done;• how it was done;• were there any constraints and limitations; and• if standard techniques/guidance were not followed, why not?

5.16. Describe what survey, experimental or impact assessment techniques were used (give references to standard techniques, taxonomic books or keys where available (see CIEEM’s Sources of Survey Methods in the online Technical Guidance Section of the Institute’s web site). Ensure methods used are up-to-date and follow good

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practice. If surveying for protected species or species of principal importance2, state which species were looked for and the methods/signs used, even if the result was negative. If the methods used deviate from, or are only based on, standard methods, state how they differ and why (see BS42020; Clauses 6.3.6 to 6.3.8).

5.17. Provide the following information:• Description of each survey method used in sufficient detail to allow others to validate or repeat the survey;• Definition of the study area for each survey;• Provide the names and qualifications (and licence numbers, if relevant) of the surveyors;• State the dates of any surveys undertaken;• Description of equipment or software where used (e.g. type of bat detector) for this particular investigation;• Description of the operating conditions (e.g. weather conditions, time of year, number of surveyors etc.) - for

more complex investigations consider putting these in an appendix;• Description of constraints/limitations on the methodology (e.g. time, resources, lack of access, sub-optimal

season);• A clear statement of any assumptions that have been made;• A description of statistical techniques and confidence limits that have been used;• Justification for extending the survey outside of a development’s boundaries (where necessary, client and

landowner agreement must be sought - see CIEEM’s PGS 5 Guidance for Access to Land);• Explanation of how the locations used in a survey for sampling, quadrats or transect routes are made clear in the

report and how they may be identified on the ground, e.g. by use of accurate GIS coordinates;• Details of information gathered through data search and desk study, including details of who was contacted,

which sources were reviewed, and the study area and date of search;• Inclusion in the main report of only the interpretation of lists of historical records, with an explanation of how

these have influenced the field surveys - long detailed lists of records should be included as an appendix if required, or state that a full list is available on request if not (see BS42020; Clause 6.11.1).

Results

5.18. The results should include:• desk study results, including historical records and records which provide contextual information from the area

around the ‘site’;• fieldwork;• experimental work (note that results should only be stated in this section, not discussed);• a clear distinction between what the facts are and what are only assumptions.

5.19. The results section is normally written in the past tense and in a passive and impersonal style (e.g. ‘bats were recorded’ rather than ‘I recorded bats’ or ‘bats are present’). However, note that the baseline conditions section of an EcIA Report, for example, is normally written in the present (or future) tense, as it describes what is there, or is likely to be there, at the time that an impact occurs; baseline conditions therefore require interpretation of survey results to allow this (see also 5.24. below).

5.20. Choose the clearest means of communication (e.g. words, tables, graphs, drawings or photographs) to make it easy for the reader to understand. All relevant results, providing the evidence for the discussion and conclusions, should be included. They should be complete enough for an independent ecologist to validate the conclusions drawn, but manageable and presented in summary form if possible. Photographs can be particularly helpful to readers when discussing habitats, sites, or other features, but they should not replace a clear description and interpretation in the text.

5.21. Reports providing the results of a single species survey can usefully sub-divide this section into ‘desk study’ and ‘field survey’ results. However, where the report is providing the results of numerous different types of ecological survey, or an assessment of ecological effects associated with a development, the desk study results and field survey results for a given species should be provided together, rather than in separate sections: this makes cross-referencing easier and provides a more logical flow to the report.

5.22. Where appropriate, raw data should be included in the appendices, together with appropriate metadata3. As a minimum, the latter should include details of what the data are, and why, where, when and how they were collected, and by whom. Metadata are particularly important if data becomes separated from the original report e.g. if sent to a Biological Record Centre or third party.

Discussion and Analysis of Results

5.23. Take care not simply to repeat the results. Draw out meaning and implications with reference to theory, legislation, management, mitigation, etc (see 5.13. above). Arguments should be made here that link the original brief to the conclusions, following a logical sequence, as objectively as possible. Any limitations or problems with the methodology should also be discussed.

2 In England, Wales and Scotland “habitats and species of principal importance for the conservation of biodiversity” are listed respectively under s.41 and s.42 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 and under s.2(4) of the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004; and in Northern Ireland as a Priority Species List (undated). The country-based lists are all shown on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) website (http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/). See UK Priority Lists and click on the relevant country at: http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-57173 Refer to CIEEM’s Professional Guidance Series No. 10 Metadata Standards.

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5.24. Depending on the nature of the report, this section may have a different heading. For example, Ecological Impact Assessments should provide the interpretation and analysis of the surveys in the baseline conditions section, rather than a separate section. This then enables the author to bring together and interpret the results of field surveys, desk study, habitat assessment, any relevant contextual information, and to consider predictable activities or events that could change the baseline conditions in the future, to describe what will be there at the time that the impact occurs.

Other sections

5.25. Particular report types may, by convention, contain different headings or additional sub-headings. EcIA Reports, for example, will normally include sections such as ‘Basline Ecological Conditions’ and ‘Assessment of Effects and Mitigation Measures’, rather than ‘Results’, ‘Discussion’ and ‘Recommendations’. For more information on types of report and their purpose, see Table 1. and Appendices A and B (for PEARs and EcIA Reports respectively).

Recommendations

5.26. In this section, present recommended courses of action to be taken as a result of the work and analysis undertaken so far and expand on any recommendations given in the summary. These should be as precise as possible, tailored to the purpose of the report and the client’s situation, rather than a ‘generic’ response. You should give careful consideration to the use of terms such as ‘will’ or ‘should’. ‘Will’ can be used when your recommendations have been discussed and agreed with the client. ‘Should’ indicates that the report is aimed at informing the client of your suggestions and gives no indication to a third party (e.g. the decision-maker) as to whether or not the client is prepared to carry them out. This distinction is important if the report is to be submitted with a planning application and especially where the recommendations may ultimately result in necessary measures being secured via planning conditions. The decision-maker therefore requires as much certainty as possible (See BS42020 clause 6.6 ’Providing certainty and clarity for the decision-maker and the applicant’).

5.27. The ‘Recommendations’ section should not include discussion.5.28. A time limit should be given indicating how long the particular ecological data should be relied on for decision-

making purposes without the need to be updated, e.g. for EPS licences 18-24 months.

Conclusions

5.29. A short section describing how the report meets the brief described in the introduction. Very briefly summarise the discussions/results in the main body of the report and the recommendations. Assess the implications of evidence already presented. For short reports, it may be appropriate to combine the conclusions and recommendations sections, where the recommendations deliver the reports objectives.

5.30. A reader should be able to pick up your report and grasp the most significant points by reading only the summary and conclusions.

5.31. Where a report has been prepared to support a planning application (e.g. an EcIA Report), CIEEM would expect the report to provide a clear statement in the conclusions as to what the likely outcomes are for biodiversity if the proposed development is granted planning permission. Such implications may be presented as a table and/or as a statement of ‘net losses and gains’ and should provide the decision-maker with a clear understanding of the likely consequence for habitats and species likely to be affected significantly by the proposals.

References

5.32. Whatever format is used, references must provide the reader with enough information to easily track down the source material for further investigation if required. All work by other people referred to in the text must be referenced.

5.33. Information on citing references (e.g. the Harvard System of Referencing Guide) can be accessed online to ensure literature referred to in the report is acknowledged appropriately. These may include electronic reference bases e.g. Endnote.

Appendices

5.34. Appendices may be used to provide detailed, lengthy or supplementary information (e.g. raw data, species lists, supplementary diagrams, photographs, maps, glossary of terms). Removing these from the text allows the reader to concentrate on the main issues without distraction. All appendices must be clearly labelled and referred to where appropriate in the main text. Avoid large amounts of standard cut and paste text and consider carefully what information will really benefit the reader. Inclusion of very long lists/tables of species data/records received from other data providers should also be avoided, although a brief summary with interpretation of such information should be made known to the reader and the whole dataset made available on request. Ensure methods used are up-to-date and follow good practice. If surveying for protected species or species of principal importance, state which species were looked for and the methods/signs used, even if the result was negative. If the methods used deviate from, or are only based on, standard methods, state how they differ and why (see BS42020; Clauses 6.3.6 to 6.3.8).

10

6. Common Pitfalls6.1. Common pitfalls include:

• Failure to establish the purpose of the report, the target audience and what it will be used for. Not considering these issues at the beginning is a common reason for reports being badly written or not being suitable for their intended purpose.

• Inappropriate or careless use of cut and paste of standard blocks of text. While often a useful time saver, these must be checked for accuracy and relevance. For instance, use of a generic paragraph for survey methods may not be appropriate if, in fact, different methods or equipment were used.

• Where a report or document has evolved through various iterations, failure to update revisions and dates of the report may lead to confusion over what version is being read or referred to.

• Not providing a clear link between the results presented and the recommendations made, or the conclusions reached.

• Discrepancy between the summary, recommendations and conclusions.• Description of results appearing in the methodology section.• Lack of proportionality, resulting in excessively long and detailed assessments which are not of particular

relevance to the report’s purpose. Striking the right balance between keeping the report succinct and ensuring that the report is sufficiently robust can be difficult and requires experience.

• Lack of proportionality within the discussion. Greater detail should be provided on key issues than on trivial ones.

• Reliance on a published survey method without justification. Consideration should always be given to survey design to ensure that the survey methods used are appropriate to the circumstances – the fact that a published survey method was followed does not necessarily mean that the survey was done appropriately!

• Failure to check and discuss the evidence base for mitigation, compensation or enhancement measure.

7. other Useful GuidanceBritish Standards Institution (2013). BS42020Biodiversity–Acodeofpracticeforplanninganddevelopment. http://eshop.bsi-global.com/ProductDetails.aspx?p=30154979&cat=Environment

Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (2012). Guidelines for Preliminary Ecological Assessment. Technical Guidance Series. http://www.cieem.net/guidance-on-preliminary-ecological-appraisal-gpea

Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (2013). Guidance for access to land. Professional Guidance Series No. 7.

Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (2013). Metadata Standards. Professional Guidance Series No. 10.

Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (2016). Guidelines for Ecological Impact Assessment in the UK and Ireland: Terrestrial, Freshwater and Coastal (version January 2016). Technical Guidance Series. https://www.cieem.net/ecia-guidelines-terrestrial-

Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (Ongoing). Sources of Survey Methods. Technical Guidance Series. https://www.cieem.net/sources-of-survey-methods-sosm-

Regini, K. (2000). Guidelines for ecological impact evaluation and impact assessment. InPractice,BulletinoftheInstituteofEcologyandEnvironmentalManagement, 29: 1-7.

Shepherd, P. and Green, J. (2002). Planning and implementing ecological surveys. InPractice,BulletinoftheInstituteofEcologyandEnvironmentalManagement, 36: 7-9.

11

Appe

ndix

A. T

empl

ate

for P

relim

inar

y Ec

olog

ical

App

rais

al R

epor

t (PE

AR)

This

tem

plat

e sh

ould

be

used

in a

ccor

danc

e w

ith th

e re

com

men

datio

ns p

rese

nted

in C

IEEM

’s Gu

idelinesfo

rEcologicalR

eportW

riting

. The

tem

plat

e is

inte

nded

to p

rovi

de a

logi

cal a

nd

reas

onab

le st

ruct

ure

for t

hose

pre

parin

g a

Prel

imin

ary

Ecol

ogic

al A

ppra

isal R

epor

t (PE

AR) t

hat m

ay b

e su

bmitt

ed to

a c

lient

to id

entif

y ec

olog

ical

con

stra

ints

and

opp

ortu

nitie

s pre

sent

on

a sit

e, a

nd to

mak

e re

com

men

datio

ns o

n w

hat f

urth

er w

ork

may

be

requ

ired

to c

ompl

ete

an E

cIA

nece

ssar

y to

supp

ort a

pla

nnin

g ap

plic

ation

. The

tem

plat

e sh

ould

be

used

to g

uide

the

topi

cs

and

cont

ent t

o be

incl

uded

in su

ch a

repo

rt.

Secti

onCo

nten

t

A1. C

over

pag

eRe

port

title

.Da

te o

f rep

ort.

Nam

e an

d co

ntac

t det

ails

of p

rinci

pal a

utho

r.N

ame

of in

divi

dual

/org

anisa

tion

who

com

miss

ione

d th

e re

port

.U

niqu

e re

fere

nce

num

ber s

o th

at th

e re

port

can

be

refe

rred

to, i

nclu

ding

ver

sion

num

ber (

e.g.

dat

e an

d/or

1st

, 2nd

, pro

visio

nal

or fi

nal d

raft

etc)

.A2

. Qua

lity

Assu

ranc

eDe

tails

of Q

A pr

otoc

ol

A3. C

onte

nts t

able

Prov

ide

page

num

bers

for e

ach

secti

on (a

nd p

ossib

ly a

lso su

b-se

ction

s), a

s wel

l as fi

gure

s and

app

endi

ces.

A4. S

umm

ary

A on

e pa

ge su

mm

ary

of:

• Pu

rpos

e of

the

repo

rt•

Met

hodo

logy

• Ke

y iss

ues

• Co

nclu

sions

Cons

ider

incl

usio

n of

a p

rovi

siona

l Eco

logi

cal C

onst

rain

ts a

nd O

ppor

tuni

ties P

lan

(ECO

P) a

s spe

cifie

d in

BS4

2020

cla

use

5.4

as a

gr

aphi

cal m

eans

of p

rese

nting

key

info

rmati

on (s

ee a

lso A

9 be

low

).A5

. Int

rodu

ction

Nam

e an

d qu

alifi

catio

ns o

f prin

cipa

l aut

hor.

Nam

e of

indi

vidu

al/o

rgan

isatio

n w

ho c

omm

issio

ned

the

repo

rt.

Site

nam

e.Br

ief d

escr

iptio

n of

the

site.

Refe

renc

e to

a p

lan

show

ing

the

site

boun

darie

s with

an

OS

base

.A

brie

f des

crip

tion

of th

e pr

opos

ed p

roje

ct th

at m

ay e

vent

ually

go

forw

ard

as a

pla

nnin

g ap

plic

ation

e.g

. an

outli

ne p

lann

ing

appl

icati

on fo

r res

iden

tial d

evel

opm

ent o

f the

site

. Cl

ear s

tate

men

t of t

he p

urpo

se o

f the

repo

rt e

.g.:

• To

iden

tify

key

ecol

ogic

al c

onst

rain

ts to

the

prop

osed

dev

elop

men

t•

To in

form

mas

ter-p

lann

ing

to a

llow

sign

ifica

nt e

colo

gica

l effe

cts t

o be

avo

ided

or m

inim

ised

whe

reve

r pos

sible

• To

allo

w th

e fu

rthe

r eco

logi

cal s

urve

ys n

eede

d to

info

rm a

n ec

olog

ical

impa

ct a

sses

smen

t to

be id

entifi

ed a

nd

appr

opria

tely

des

igne

d•

To a

llow

like

ly m

itiga

tion

or c

ompe

nsati

on m

easu

res t

o be

dev

elop

ed•

To fo

rm a

bas

is fo

r agr

eein

g th

e sc

ope

of th

e ec

olog

ical

impa

ct a

sses

smen

t with

rele

vant

con

sulte

es

12

Secti

onCo

nten

t

A6. P

lann

ing

polic

y an

d le

gisla

tion

(Not

e: T

his c

an b

e in

clud

ed a

s a se

ction

in th

e m

ain

body

of t

he re

port

or c

an b

e in

clud

ed a

s an

appe

ndix

)

Prov

ide

all r

elev

ant p

lann

ing

polic

ies (

natio

nal a

nd lo

cal)

that

app

ly to

the

site

in q

uesti

on.

List

all

rele

vant

legi

slatio

n.It

is im

port

ant t

hat t

his s

ectio

n is

sche

me-

spec

ific.

Whe

re a

pie

ce o

f leg

islati

on is

rele

vant

, exp

lain

why

(i.e

. how

it re

late

s to

prot

ecte

d sp

ecie

s tha

t are

/cou

ld b

e pr

esen

t).

A7. M

etho

dolo

gy/M

etho

dsA7

.1 D

esk

stud

yLi

st th

e in

divi

dual

s or o

rgan

isatio

ns th

at h

ave

been

con

tact

ed.

List

the

web

sites

that

hav

e be

en u

sed

to se

arch

for r

elev

ant d

ata.

Desc

ribe

the

info

rmati

on th

at h

as b

een

requ

este

d/se

arch

ed fo

r.De

scrib

e th

e st

udy

area

(lik

ely

to v

ary

in re

latio

n to

diff

eren

t fea

ture

s).

Stat

e w

hen

data

sear

ches

wer

e ca

rrie

d ou

t.Li

st a

ny e

colo

gica

l rep

orts

that

hav

e be

en re

view

ed, s

uch

as p

revi

ous r

epor

ts fo

r the

sam

e sit

e, o

r rep

orts

for a

djac

ent s

ites.

A7. M

etho

dolo

gy/M

etho

dsA7

.2 F

ield

surv

eyFo

r eac

h fie

ld su

rvey

und

erta

ken

prov

ide:

• Br

ief d

escr

iptio

n of

met

hodo

logy

/met

hods

• N

ames

and

qua

lifica

tions

of s

urve

yors

• Da

te(s

) and

tim

e of

day

(whe

re re

leva

nt) o

f sur

veys

• St

udy

area

• W

eath

er c

ondi

tions

at ti

me

of su

rvey

(s)

• Re

fere

nce

to re

leva

nt g

uida

nce

docu

men

t (w

here

app

ropr

iate

)•

Expl

anati

on o

f any

dep

artu

res f

rom

reco

mm

ende

d gu

idan

ce•

Lim

itatio

nsN

ote:

Whe

re m

ultip

le su

rvey

visi

ts h

ave

been

und

erta

ken,

dat

es, ti

mes

and

wea

ther

con

ditio

ns o

f sur

veys

can

be

prov

ided

in a

ta

ble

in a

n ap

pend

ix.

Not

e: W

here

the

field

surv

ey w

as a

n ‘e

xten

ded

Phas

e 1

habi

tat s

urve

y’ o

r the

equ

ival

ent i

n Ire

land

, it i

s im

port

ant t

o ex

plai

n w

hat w

as d

one

in a

dditi

on to

the

stan

dard

hab

itat s

urve

y, su

ch a

s an

asse

ssm

ent o

f the

like

ly v

alue

of t

he h

edge

row

s for

do

rmic

e, o

r ide

ntific

ation

of a

ny b

uild

ings

or t

rees

suita

ble

for u

se b

y ro

ostin

g ba

ts, e

tc.

A8. B

asel

ine

ecol

ogic

al c

ondi

tions

/Res

ults

A8.1

Des

igna

ted

sites

Prov

ide

deta

ils o

f all

desig

nate

d sit

es o

f rel

evan

ce (o

r pos

sible

rele

vanc

e) to

the

asse

ssm

ent,

incl

udin

g na

me,

leve

l of d

esig

natio

n,

loca

tion

rela

tive

to th

e sit

e, a

nd re

ason

s for

des

igna

tion.

In

som

e ca

ses i

t will

be

rele

vant

to in

clud

e a

plan

show

ing

the

loca

tion

of d

esig

nate

d sit

es.

A8. B

asel

ine

ecol

ogic

al c

ondi

tions

/Res

ults

A8.2

Hab

itats

Prov

ide

a de

scrip

tion

of th

e ha

bita

t typ

es p

rese

nt w

ithin

the

site

and

on im

med

iate

ly a

djac

ent l

and.

Foc

us sh

ould

be

give

n to

ha

bita

t typ

es id

entifi

ed a

s bei

ng o

f nati

onal

or l

ocal

impo

rtan

ce fo

r the

con

serv

ation

of b

iodi

vers

ity.

This

shou

ld m

ake

refe

renc

e to

a h

abita

t map

of t

he si

te, n

orm

ally

dra

wn

in a

ccor

danc

e w

ith P

hase

1 h

abita

t sur

vey

met

hodo

logy

or t

he e

quiv

alen

t in

Irela

nd.

How

ever

, it s

houl

d be

not

ed th

at th

e ha

bita

t cat

egor

ies u

sed

by th

e Ph

ase

1 ha

bita

t sur

vey

met

hodo

logy

do

not m

irror

the

habi

tat t

ypes

con

sider

ed to

be

cons

erva

tion

prio

rities

, and

furt

her d

etai

ls w

ill th

eref

ore

need

to b

e pr

ovid

ed in

som

e ca

ses.

The

de

scrip

tion

shou

ld in

clud

e al

l rel

evan

t inf

orm

ation

, suc

h as

dom

inan

t pla

nt sp

ecie

s pre

sent

, not

able

pla

nt sp

ecie

s, a

nd c

urre

nt

man

agem

ent.

13

Secti

onCo

nten

tA8

. Bas

elin

e ec

olog

ical

con

ditio

ns/R

esul

tsA8

.3 S

peci

es a

nd sp

ecie

s gro

ups

Not

e: T

his c

an b

e su

b-he

aded

as f

ollo

ws,

for e

xam

ple:

i. Pl

ants

ii.

Inve

rteb

rate

siii

. Am

phib

ians

iv.

Repti

les

v. Ci

rl bu

nting

svi

. O

ther

bird

svi

i. Ba

tsvi

ii. D

orm

ice

ix.

Badg

ers

x.

Oth

er m

amm

als

Prov

ide

a de

scrip

tion

of th

e us

e of

the

site

(or l

ikel

y us

e of

the

site)

by

impo

rtan

t spe

cies

(nati

onal

or l

ocal

con

serv

ation

prio

rities

, or

pro

tect

ed sp

ecie

s).

This

shou

ld b

e ba

sed

on a

com

bina

tion

of d

esk

stud

y in

form

ation

, fiel

d su

rvey

dat

a, a

nd a

n as

sess

men

t of

the

likel

y va

lue

of th

e ha

bita

ts fo

r eac

h sp

ecie

s pre

sent

. The

des

crip

tion

for e

ach

spec

ies/

grou

p sh

ould

com

bine

the

info

rmati

on

prov

ided

from

the

vario

us d

ata

sour

ces,

rath

er th

an in

clud

ing

desk

stud

y an

d fie

ld su

rvey

info

rmati

on fo

r the

sam

e sp

ecie

s/gr

oup

in d

iffer

ent p

arts

of t

he re

port

.Th

e de

taile

d re

sults

of fi

eld

surv

eys s

houl

d be

pre

sent

ed o

n pl

ans (

for s

ome

sites

they

can

be

incl

uded

on

a Ph

ase

1 ha

bita

t map

or

the

equi

vale

nt in

Irel

and)

and

/or i

n ap

pend

ices

.In

som

e ca

ses i

t will

be

appr

opria

te to

gro

up sp

ecie

s tog

ethe

r int

o sp

ecie

s gro

ups t

o av

oid

repe

tition

.A

prec

autio

nary

app

roac

h w

ill n

eed

to b

e ad

opte

d w

here

surv

eys h

ave

not b

een

com

plet

ed a

t the

tim

e th

at th

e re

port

is w

ritten

.Gu

ided

by

the

resu

lts fr

om d

ata

sear

ches

, it w

ill b

e ap

prop

riate

to in

clud

e th

e fo

llow

ing

rele

vant

spec

ies/

spec

ies g

roup

s as a

m

inim

um fo

r all

sites

:•

Plan

ts•

Inve

rteb

rate

s•

Amph

ibia

ns•

Repti

les

• Bi

rds

• Ba

ts•

Badg

ers

• O

ther

mam

mal

sAd

ditio

nal s

peci

es o

r spe

cies

gro

ups m

ay a

lso b

e ap

prop

riate

, and

it m

ay b

e ap

prop

riate

to fu

rthe

r sub

-div

ide

the

grou

ps to

pro

-vi

de a

det

aile

d de

scrip

tion

of c

erta

in sp

ecie

s for

exa

mpl

e, su

ch a

s mar

sh fr

itilla

ry b

utter

flies

, gre

at c

rest

ed n

ewts

, cirl

bun

tings

, ba

rbas

telle

bat

s, e

tc.

A9. E

colo

gica

l con

stra

ints

and

opp

ortu

nitie

s, a

nd

reco

mm

enda

tions

for m

itiga

tion

and

furt

her s

urve

yN

ote:

Thi

s can

be

sub-

head

ed a

s fol

low

s, fo

r exa

mpl

e:i.

Rive

r X S

SSI

ii.

Anci

ent w

oodl

and

iii.

Oth

er h

abita

tsiv.

In

vert

ebra

tes

v. Am

phib

ians

vi.

Repti

les

vii.

Bird

svi

ii. B

ats

Or: i.

Key

cons

trai

nts t

o de

sign

ii.

Oth

er m

itiga

tion

requ

irem

ents

iii.

Furt

her s

urve

ys re

quire

div.

O

ppor

tuni

ties f

or e

nhan

cem

ent

Iden

tify

all e

colo

gica

l con

stra

ints

to th

e de

velo

pmen

t (in

clud

ing

pote

ntial

con

stra

ints

, whe

re th

ere

is in

suffi

cien

t inf

orm

ation

av

aila

ble

to b

e de

finiti

ve a

t the

stag

e th

at th

e re

port

is w

ritten

).Pr

ovid

e de

tails

on

how

pot

entia

lly si

gnifi

cant

effe

cts c

ould

be

avoi

ded,

min

imise

d or

oth

erw

ise m

itiga

ted.

If p

rovi

ding

det

ails

on

miti

gatio

n, c

ompe

nsati

on o

r enh

ance

men

t mea

sure

s, re

fer t

o th

e ev

iden

ce b

ase

for e

ach.

Prov

ide

a ju

stific

ation

for t

he le

vel o

f con

stra

int (

geog

raph

ical

impo

rtan

ce o

f the

feat

ure,

des

igna

ted

sites

, leg

al p

rote

ction

, etc

.).De

scrib

e th

e ad

ditio

nal s

urve

ys n

eces

sary

to in

form

a d

etai

led

ecol

ogic

al im

pact

ass

essm

ent,

suffi

cien

t to

info

rm a

pla

nnin

g ap

plic

ation

, pro

vidi

ng d

etai

ls on

stud

y ar

eas a

nd a

ppro

pria

te m

etho

dolo

gies

and

tim

ing

for e

ach.

Iden

tify

oppo

rtun

ities

for b

iodi

vers

ity g

ain.

Prov

ide

sum

mar

y ta

bles

of m

itiga

tion

mea

sure

s req

uire

d (o

r pot

entia

lly re

quire

d) a

nd fu

rthe

r sur

veys

.Co

nsid

er u

se o

f a p

rovi

siona

l Eco

logi

cal C

onst

rain

ts a

nd O

ppor

tuni

ties P

lan

(ECO

P) a

s spe

cifie

d in

BS4

2020

cla

use

5.4

as a

gr

aphi

cal m

eans

of p

rese

nting

key

info

rmati

on.

14

Secti

onCo

nten

t

A10.

Con

clus

ions

Draw

con

clus

ions

in re

latio

n to

the

purp

ose

of th

e re

port

, ens

urin

g th

ese

are

justi

fiabl

e ba

sed

on th

e co

nten

t of t

he re

port

.W

here

ver f

urth

er su

rvey

s are

requ

ired,

or f

urth

er in

form

ation

is n

eede

d to

info

rm a

det

aile

d as

sess

men

t of a

ll ec

olog

ical

effe

cts,

th

is m

ust b

e cl

early

stat

ed in

the

conc

lusio

ns.

A11.

Ref

eren

ces

All d

ocum

ents

refe

rred

to in

the

text

shou

ld b

e lis

ted

and

appr

opria

tely

refe

renc

ed.

A12.

Fig

ures

Prov

ide

a pl

an sh

owin

g th

e fe

atur

es re

ferr

ed to

in th

e re

port

(nor

mal

ly b

ased

on

a Ph

ase

1 ha

bita

t map

or t

he e

quiv

alen

t in

Irela

nd).

It

may

be

appr

opria

te to

pro

vide

oth

er p

lans

/figu

res t

o sh

ow th

e lo

catio

ns o

f spe

cific

eco

logi

cal f

eatu

res r

efer

red

to in

the

repo

rt.

A13.

App

endi

ces

Prov

ide

deta

iled

surv

ey m

etho

dolo

gies

and

resu

lts in

app

endi

ces.

Site

pho

togr

aphs

can

also

be

prov

ided

in a

n ap

pend

ix.

15

Appe

ndix

B. T

empl

ate

for E

colo

gica

l Im

pact

Ass

essm

ent (

EcIA

) Rep

ort

This

tem

plat

e sh

ould

be

used

in a

ccor

danc

e w

ith th

e re

com

men

datio

ns p

rese

nted

in C

IEEM

’s Gu

idelinesfo

rEcologicalR

eportW

riting

. The

tem

plat

e is

inte

nded

to p

rovi

de a

logi

cal a

nd

reas

onab

le st

ruct

ure

for t

hose

pre

parin

g Ec

olog

ical

Impa

ct A

sses

smen

t Rep

orts

that

will

be

subm

itted

in su

ppor

t of a

pla

nnin

g ap

plic

ation

. The

tem

plat

e sh

ould

be

used

to g

uide

the

topi

cs

and

cont

ent t

o be

incl

uded

in su

ch a

repo

rt.

For a

sses

smen

ts w

hich

cle

arly

rela

te to

a si

ngle

spec

ies o

r spe

cies

gro

up (s

uch

as a

sses

smen

ts re

latin

g to

bat

s in

a pr

opos

ed b

arn

conv

ersio

n) it

will

be

appr

opria

te to

sim

plify

the

repo

rt

stru

ctur

e by

com

bini

ng se

ction

s or d

eleti

ng h

eadi

ngs f

or se

ction

s whi

ch a

re n

ot n

eede

d (fo

r exa

mpl

e, c

umul

ative

effe

cts o

r com

pens

ation

may

not

be

requ

ired

in so

me

case

s, p

artic

ular

ly fo

r ve

ry sm

all s

cale

pro

ject

s). H

owev

er, w

hilst

it m

ay b

e ap

prop

riate

to si

mpl

ify th

e st

ruct

ure

of th

e re

port

, it i

s lik

ely

that

the

cont

ents

set o

ut b

elow

will

be

rele

vant

for s

chem

es o

f any

scal

e,

and

any

maj

or d

epar

ture

s fro

m th

is ap

proa

ch sh

ould

ther

efor

e be

cle

arly

justi

fied.

Not

e: T

his t

empl

ate

may

nee

d to

be

adap

ted

for u

se in

rela

tion

to a

n Ec

IA R

epor

t for

a p

roje

ct in

the

mar

ine

envi

ronm

ent.

Secti

onCo

nten

t

B1. C

over

pag

eRe

port

title

.Da

te o

f rep

ort.

Nam

e an

d co

ntac

t det

ails

of p

rinci

pal a

utho

r.N

ame

of in

divi

dual

/org

anisa

tion

who

com

miss

ione

d th

e re

port

.U

niqu

e re

fere

nce

num

ber s

o th

at th

e re

port

can

be

refe

rred

to, i

nclu

ding

ver

sion

num

ber.

B2. Q

ualit

y As

sura

nce

Deta

ils o

f QA

prot

ocol

B3. C

onte

nts t

able

Prov

ide

page

num

bers

for e

ach

secti

on (a

nd p

ossib

ly a

lso su

b-se

ction

s), a

s wel

l as fi

gure

s, ta

bles

and

app

endi

ces.

B4. S

umm

ary

A on

e-pa

ge su

mm

ary

of:

• Pu

rpos

e of

the

repo

rt•

Desc

riptio

n of

the

sche

me

• M

etho

dolo

gy/m

etho

ds•

Key

impa

cts a

nd m

itiga

tion

mea

sure

s•

Conc

lusio

nsCo

nsid

er a

lso u

se o

f a fi

nalis

ed E

colo

gica

l Con

stra

ints

and

Opp

ortu

nitie

s Pla

n (E

COP)

as s

peci

fied

in B

S420

20 c

laus

e 5.

4 as

a

grap

hica

l mea

ns o

f pre

senti

ng k

ey in

form

ation

.

16

Secti

onCo

nten

t

B5. I

ntro

ducti

onN

ame,

qua

lifica

tions

and

com

pete

nce

of p

rinci

pal a

utho

r.N

ame

of in

divi

dual

/org

anisa

tion

who

com

miss

ione

d th

e re

port

.Pu

rpos

e of

the

repo

rt.

Site

nam

e.Br

ief d

escr

iptio

n of

the

site.

Refe

renc

e to

a p

lan

show

ing

the

site

boun

darie

s with

an

OS

base

.A

brie

f des

crip

tion

of th

e pr

ojec

t, e.

g. a

n ou

tline

pla

nnin

g ap

plic

ation

for r

esid

entia

l dev

elop

men

t of t

he si

te.

Refe

renc

e to

any

pre

viou

s rep

orts

pro

vide

d fo

r the

site

(e.g

. a P

relim

inar

y Ec

olog

ical

App

raisa

l Rep

ort)

.Cl

ear s

tate

men

t of t

he p

urpo

se o

f the

repo

rt e

.g.:

• To

iden

tify

and

desc

ribe

all p

oten

tially

sign

ifica

nt e

colo

gica

l effe

cts a

ssoc

iate

d w

ith th

e pr

opos

ed d

evel

opm

ent

• To

set o

ut th

e m

itiga

tion

mea

sure

s req

uire

d to

ens

ure

com

plia

nce

with

nat

ure

cons

erva

tion

legi

slatio

n an

d to

add

ress

an

y po

tenti

ally

sign

ifica

nt e

colo

gica

l effe

cts

• To

iden

tify

how

miti

gatio

n m

easu

res w

ill/c

ould

be

secu

red

• To

pro

vide

an

asse

ssm

ent o

f the

sign

ifica

nce

of a

ny re

sidua

l effe

cts

• To

iden

tify

appr

opria

te e

nhan

cem

ent m

easu

res

• To

set o

ut th

e re

quire

men

ts fo

r pos

t-con

stru

ction

mon

itorin

gB6

. Pla

nnin

g po

licy

and

legi

slatio

n(N

ote:

Thi

s can

be

incl

uded

as a

secti

on in

the

mai

n bo

dy o

f th

e re

port

or c

an b

e in

clud

ed a

s an

appe

ndix

)

Prov

ide

all k

ey re

leva

nt p

lann

ing

polic

ies (

natio

nal a

nd lo

cal).

List

all

rele

vant

legi

slatio

n.It

is im

port

ant t

hat t

his s

ectio

n is

sche

me-

spec

ific.

Whe

re a

pie

ce o

f leg

islati

on is

rele

vant

, exp

lain

why

(i.e

. whi

ch p

rote

cted

sp

ecie

s are

pre

sent

).

B7. M

etho

dolo

gy/M

etho

dsB7

.1 S

cope

of t

he a

sses

smen

tDe

scrib

e th

e sc

ope

of th

e as

sess

men

t, in

clud

ing:

• A

desc

riptio

n of

the

Zone

/Zon

es o

f Infl

uenc

e•

List

the

type

s of f

eatu

res c

onsid

ered

, e.g

. des

igna

ted

sites

, hab

itats

and

spec

ies o

f prin

cipa

l im

port

ance

for

cons

erva

tion

of b

iodi

vers

ity, p

rote

cted

spec

ies,

etc

.•

Desc

ribe

any

cons

ulta

tion

that

has

take

n pl

ace

in re

latio

n to

det

erm

inin

g th

e sc

ope

of th

e as

sess

men

t B7

. Met

hodo

logy

/Met

hods

B7.2

Des

k st

udy

List

the

indi

vidu

als o

r org

anisa

tions

that

hav

e be

en c

onta

cted

.Li

st th

e w

ebsit

es th

at h

ave

been

use

d to

sear

ch fo

r rel

evan

t dat

a.De

scrib

e th

e in

form

ation

that

has

bee

n re

ques

ted/

sear

ched

for.

Desc

ribe

the

stud

y ar

ea (l

ikel

y to

var

y in

rela

tion

to d

iffer

ent f

eatu

res)

.St

ate

whe

n da

ta se

arch

es w

ere

carr

ied

out.

List

any

eco

logi

cal r

epor

ts th

at h

ave

been

revi

ewed

, suc

h as

pre

viou

s rep

orts

for t

he sa

me

site,

or r

epor

ts fo

r adj

acen

t site

s (a

ppro

pria

tely

refe

renc

ed).

17

Secti

onCo

nten

t

B7. M

etho

dolo

gy/m

etho

dsB7

.3 F

ield

surv

eyFo

r eac

h fie

ld su

rvey

und

erta

ken

prov

ide:

• Br

ief d

escr

iptio

n of

met

hodo

logy

/met

hods

• N

ames

and

qua

lifica

tions

of s

urve

yors

• Da

te(s

) of s

urve

ys•

Stud

y ar

ea•

Wea

ther

con

ditio

ns a

t tim

e of

surv

ey(s

) and

tim

e of

day

(if r

elev

ant)

• Re

fere

nce

to re

leva

nt g

uida

nce

docu

men

t (w

here

app

ropr

iate

)•

Expl

anati

on o

f any

dep

artu

res f

rom

reco

mm

ende

d gu

idan

ce•

Lim

itatio

nsN

ote:

Whe

re m

ultip

le su

rvey

visi

ts h

ave

been

und

erta

ken,

dat

es, ti

mes

and

wea

ther

con

ditio

ns o

f sur

veys

can

be

prov

ided

in

a ta

ble

in a

n ap

pend

ix.

Not

e: D

etai

led

desc

riptio

ns o

f sur

vey

met

hods

can

be

prov

ided

in a

n ap

pend

ix.

Not

e: W

here

the

field

surv

ey w

as a

n ‘e

xten

ded

Phas

e 1

habi

tat s

urve

y’ (o

r the

equ

ival

ent i

n Ire

land

), it

is im

port

ant t

o ex

plai

n w

hat w

as d

one

in a

dditi

on to

the

stan

dard

Pha

se 1

hab

itat s

urve

y or

equ

ival

ent i

n Ire

land

, suc

h as

an

asse

ssm

ent o

f the

like

ly

valu

e of

the

hedg

erow

s for

dor

mic

e, o

r ide

ntific

ation

of a

ny b

uild

ings

or t

rees

suita

ble

for u

se b

y ro

ostin

g ba

ts, e

tc.

B7. M

etho

dolo

gy/m

etho

dsB7

.4 A

sses

smen

tDe

scrib

e th

e as

sess

men

t met

hodo

logy

use

d. In

par

ticul

ar:

• Ho

w h

as si

gnifi

canc

e be

en d

eter

min

ed.

• W

hat g

eogr

aphi

cal c

onte

xts

are

used

, and

how

hav

e th

ese

been

det

erm

ined

.•

Stat

e w

hich

yea

rs h

ave

been

ass

umed

for t

he a

sses

smen

t of i

mpa

cts (

and

for w

hich

bas

elin

e co

nditi

ons h

ave

been

de

scrib

ed).

B8. B

asel

ine

ecol

ogic

al c

ondi

tions

(Gen

eral

)Pr

ovid

e a

clea

r des

crip

tion

of th

e ba

selin

e co

nditi

ons f

or a

ll fe

atur

es. T

his s

houl

d be

bas

ed o

n th

e co

nditi

ons a

t the

tim

e th

at th

e ac

tivity

giv

ing

rise

to a

n im

pact

occ

urs,

ass

umin

g th

e ab

senc

e of

the

deve

lopm

ent.

In so

me

case

s thi

s may

requ

ire

cons

ider

ation

of t

he b

asel

ine

cond

ition

s in

mul

tiple

yea

rs (f

or e

xam

ple,

to a

ccou

nt fo

r ope

ratio

nal p

hase

impa

cts)

.In

clud

e a

stat

emen

t of t

he g

eogr

aphi

cal c

onte

xts w

ithin

whi

ch e

ach

feat

ure

is co

nsid

ered

to b

e im

port

ant.

Pro

vide

a

sum

mar

y ta

ble

listin

g al

l of t

he re

leva

nt fe

atur

es a

nd th

e ge

ogra

phic

al c

onte

xt w

ithin

whi

ch e

ach

is co

nsid

ered

to b

e im

port

ant.

B8. B

asel

ine

ecol

ogic

al c

ondi

tions

B8.1

Des

igna

ted

sites

Prov

ide

deta

ils o

f all

desig

nate

d sit

es o

f rel

evan

ce (o

r pos

sible

rele

vanc

e) to

the

asse

ssm

ent,

incl

udin

g na

me,

leve

l of

desig

natio

n, lo

catio

n re

lativ

e to

the

site,

and

reas

ons f

or d

esig

natio

n. I

n so

me

case

s it w

ill b

e re

leva

nt to

incl

ude

a pl

an

show

ing

the

loca

tion

of d

esig

nate

d sit

es.

B8. B

asel

ine

ecol

ogic

al c

ondi

tions

B8.2

Hab

itats

Prov

ide

a de

scrip

tion

of th

e ha

bita

t typ

es p

rese

nt w

ithin

the

site

and

on im

med

iate

ly a

djac

ent l

and.

Foc

us sh

ould

be

give

n to

hab

itat t

ypes

iden

tified

as b

eing

of n

ation

al o

r loc

al im

port

ance

for t

he c

onse

rvati

on o

f bio

dive

rsity

. Thi

s sho

uld

mak

e re

fere

nce

to a

hab

itat m

ap o

f the

site

, nor

mal

ly d

raw

n in

acc

orda

nce

with

Pha

se 1

hab

itat s

urve

y m

etho

dolo

gy (o

r the

eq

uiva

lent

in Ir

elan

d). H

owev

er, i

t sho

uld

be n

oted

that

the

habi

tat c

ateg

orie

s use

d by

Pha

se 1

Hab

itat S

urve

y do

not

mirr

or

the

habi

tat t

ypes

con

sider

ed to

be

cons

erva

tion

prio

rities

, and

furt

her d

etai

ls w

ill th

eref

ore

need

to b

e pr

ovid

ed in

som

e ca

ses.

Th

e de

scrip

tion

shou

ld in

clud

e al

l rel

evan

t inf

orm

ation

, suc

h as

dom

inan

t pla

nt sp

ecie

s pre

sent

, not

able

pla

nt sp

ecie

s, a

nd

curr

ent m

anag

emen

t.

18

Secti

onCo

nten

t

B8. B

asel

ine

ecol

ogic

al c

ondi

tions

B8.3

Spe

cies

and

spec

ies g

roup

sN

ote

This

can

be su

b-he

aded

as f

ollo

ws,

for e

xam

ple:

i. Pl

ants

ii.

Inve

rteb

rate

siii

. Am

phib

ians

iv.

Repti

les

v. Ci

rl bu

nting

svi

. O

ther

bird

svi

i. Ba

tsvi

ii. B

adge

rsix

. O

ther

mam

mal

s

Prov

ide

a de

scrip

tion

of th

e us

e of

the

site

(or l

ikel

y us

e of

the

site)

by

impo

rtan

t spe

cies

(nati

onal

or l

ocal

con

serv

ation

pr

ioriti

es, o

r pro

tect

ed sp

ecie

s). T

his s

houl

d be

bas

ed o

n a

com

bina

tion

of d

esk

stud

y in

form

ation

, fiel

d su

rvey

dat

a, a

nd a

n as

sess

men

t of t

he li

kely

val

ue o

f the

hab

itats

for e

ach

spec

ies p

rese

nt. T

he d

escr

iptio

n fo

r eac

h sp

ecie

s/gr

oup

shou

ld c

ombi

ne

the

info

rmati

on p

rovi

ded

from

the

vario

us d

ata

sour

ces,

rath

er th

an in

clud

ing

desk

stud

y an

d fie

ld su

rvey

info

rmati

on fo

r the

sa

me

spec

ies/

grou

p in

diff

eren

t par

ts o

f the

repo

rt.

The

deta

iled

resu

lts o

f fiel

d su

rvey

s sho

uld

be p

rese

nted

on

plan

s (fo

r som

e sit

es th

ey c

an b

e in

clud

ed o

n th

e Ph

ase

1 ha

bita

t m

ap o

r the

equ

ival

ent i

n Ire

land

) and

/or i

n ap

pend

ices

.In

som

e ca

ses i

t will

be

appr

opria

te to

gro

up sp

ecie

s tog

ethe

r int

o sp

ecie

s gro

ups t

o av

oid

repe

tition

.

B9. D

escr

iptio

n of

the

prop

osed

dev

elop

men

tPr

ovid

e a

deta

iled

desc

riptio

n of

the

prop

osal

s with

refe

renc

e to

app

ropr

iate

dra

win

gs.

Incl

ude

a de

scrip

tion

of h

ow th

e sc

hem

e ha

s bee

n de

signe

d to

avo

id/m

inim

ise e

colo

gica

l effe

cts,

if re

leva

nt.

B10.

Ass

essm

ent o

f effe

cts a

nd m

itiga

tion

mea

sure

s N

ote:

Thi

s can

be

sub-

head

ed a

s fol

low

s, fo

r exa

mpl

e:B.

10.1

Rep

tiles

• Po

tenti

al im

pact

s•

Miti

gatio

n m

easu

res

• Si

gnifi

canc

e of

resid

ual e

ffect

sN

ote:

Pot

entia

l im

pact

s can

be

divi

ded

into

diff

eren

t ph

ases

, but

the

signi

fican

ce o

f res

idua

l effe

cts s

houl

d re

late

to

the

proj

ect a

s a w

hole

(i.e

. all

phas

es c

ombi

ned)

Iden

tify

and

desc

ribe

all o

f the

pot

entia

l im

pact

s of t

he p

ropo

sed

deve

lopm

ent o

n ea

ch fe

atur

e id

entifi

ed in

the

‘Bas

elin

e Co

nditi

ons’

secti

on, i

nclu

ding

impa

cts a

ssoc

iate

d w

ith a

ll ph

ases

(con

stru

ction

, ope

ratio

n, re

stor

ation

, de-

com

miss

ioni

ng,

etc.

). •

Whe

re n

o im

pact

on

a pa

rticu

lar f

eatu

re is

pre

dict

ed a

cle

ar st

atem

ent t

o th

is eff

ect s

houl

d be

pro

vide

d w

ith

appr

opria

te ju

stific

ation

.•

It is

impo

rtan

t tha

t thi

s sec

tion

follo

ws t

he sa

me

sub-

head

ings

as t

he B

asel

ine

Cond

ition

s sec

tion

to e

nabl

e th

e re

ader

to

see

how

the

impa

cts o

n ea

ch fe

atur

e pr

esen

t has

bee

n as

sess

ed.

Iden

tify

and

desc

ribe

the

miti

gatio

n m

easu

res r

equi

red

and

a cl

ear s

tate

men

t of h

ow th

ese

can

be se

cure

d. R

efer

to th

e ev

iden

ce b

ase,

if a

ny, f

or th

ese

miti

gatio

n m

easu

res.

Prov

ide

an a

sses

smen

t of t

he si

gnifi

canc

e of

any

resid

ual e

ffect

s. T

his s

houl

d co

mpr

ise a

des

crip

tion

of th

e eff

ect a

nd a

st

atem

ent o

f the

geo

grap

hic

leve

l at w

hich

the

effec

t is l

ikel

y to

be

signi

fican

t (e.

g. S

igni

fican

t at t

he n

ation

al le

vel,

Sign

ifica

nt

at th

e co

unty

leve

l, N

ot si

gnifi

cant

, etc

.).Th

e as

sess

men

t mus

t inc

lude

a ro

bust

justi

ficati

on fo

r the

ass

essm

ent,

base

d on

info

rmati

on c

lear

ly p

rese

nted

in th

e re

port

. In

man

y ca

ses,

this

is lik

ely

to re

quire

refe

renc

e to

be

mad

e to

app

ropr

iate

pub

licati

ons.

Prov

ide

a su

mm

ary

tabl

e lis

ting

the

signi

fican

ce o

f res

idua

l effe

cts f

or e

ach

feat

ure,

the

miti

gatio

n m

easu

res r

equi

red

and

the

mea

ns b

y w

hich

miti

gatio

n m

easu

res c

an b

e se

cure

d to

allo

w th

e lo

cal p

lann

ing

auth

ority

to e

nsur

e th

at a

ppro

pria

te p

lann

ing

cond

ition

s/ob

ligati

ons a

re in

clud

ed w

ith a

ny c

onse

nt.

B.11

Cum

ulati

ve e

ffect

s N

ote:

Thi

s can

be

incl

uded

with

in th

e ‘A

sses

smen

t of

effec

ts a

nd m

itiga

tion

mea

sure

s’ o

r dea

lt w

ith a

s a se

para

te

secti

on

Iden

tify

any

othe

r pro

ject

s whi

ch c

ould

giv

e ris

e to

a si

gnifi

cant

cum

ulati

ve e

ffect

.De

scrib

e an

d as

sess

any

pot

entia

l cum

ulati

ve e

ffect

s and

det

erm

ine

whe

ther

they

wou

ld b

e sig

nific

ant o

r not

(and

in w

hich

ge

ogra

phic

al c

onte

xt).

Prov

ide

a ro

bust

justi

ficati

on fo

r the

con

clus

ions

reac

hed.

B1

2. C

ompe

nsati

on

(if re

leva

nt)

Whe

re c

ompe

nsati

on m

easu

res a

re c

onsid

ered

nec

essa

ry to

offs

et si

gnifi

cant

resid

ual e

ffect

s the

se sh

ould

be

desc

ribed

and

as

sess

ed. R

efer

to th

e ev

iden

ce b

ase,

if a

ny, f

or th

ese

com

pens

ation

mea

sure

s.

19

Secti

onCo

nten

t

B13.

Enh

ance

men

tPr

ovid

e a

desc

riptio

n of

the

enha

ncem

ent m

easu

res p

ropo

sed,

ove

r and

abo

ve a

ny m

itiga

tion

requ

ired,

and

how

thes

e co

uld

be se

cure

d.B1

4. M

onito

ring

Iden

tify

and

desc

ribe

any

mon

itorin

g su

rvey

s req

uire

d, in

clud

ing

deta

ils o

f met

hods

and

tim

ing,

whe

re a

ppro

pria

te.

B15.

Con

clus

ions

Draw

con

clus

ions

on

the

over

all e

colo

gica

l effe

cts o

f the

sche

me,

justi

fyin

g ho

w th

e pr

ojec

t acc

ords

with

rele

vant

legi

slatio

n an

d pl

anni

ng p

olic

y.De

mon

stra

te c

ompl

ianc

e w

ith o

r dev

iatio

n fr

om re

leva

nt d

evel

opm

ent p

lan

polic

ies a

nd st

atut

ory

oblig

ation

s.Id

entif

y m

echa

nism

s to

secu

re c

omm

itmen

t to

and

deliv

ery

of re

com

men

ded

mea

sure

s e.g

. thr

ough

pla

nnin

g co

nditi

ons a

nd/

or th

roug

h EP

S lic

ence

s.Ex

plai

n cl

early

wha

t the

like

ly o

utco

mes

are

for b

iodi

vers

ity if

the

prop

osed

dev

elop

men

t is g

rant

ed p

lann

ing

perm

issio

n. S

uch

impl

icati

ons m

ay b

e pr

esen

ted

as a

tabl

e an

d/or

as a

stat

emen

t of ‘

net l

osse

s and

gai

ns’ a

nd sh

ould

pro

vide

the

deci

sion-

mak

er w

ith a

cle

ar u

nder

stan

ding

of t

he li

kely

con

sequ

ence

for h

abita

ts a

nd sp

ecie

s lik

ely

to b

e aff

ecte

d sig

nific

antly

by

the

prop

osal

s.B1

6. R

efer

ence

sAl

l doc

umen

ts re

ferr

ed to

in th

e te

xt sh

ould

be

liste

d an

d ap

prop

riate

ly re

fere

nced

.

B17.

Fig

ures

Prov

ide

a pl

an sh

owin

g th

e fe

atur

es re

ferr

ed to

in th

e re

port

(nor

mal

ly b

ased

on

a Ph

ase

1 ha

bita

t map

or t

he e

quiv

alen

t in

Irela

nd).

It

may

be

appr

opria

te to

pro

vide

oth

er p

lans

/figu

res t

o sh

ow th

e lo

catio

ns o

f spe

cific

eco

logi

cal f

eatu

res r

efer

red

to in

the

repo

rt.

It ca

n be

hel

pful

to o

verla

y th

e sc

hem

e la

yout

or p

aram

eter

pla

ns w

ith th

e ec

olog

ical

feat

ures

.B1

8. A

ppen

dice

sPr

ovid

e de

taile

d su

rvey

met

hodo

logi

es a

nd re

sults

in a

ppen

dice

s. S

ite p

hoto

grap

hs c

an a

lso b

e pr

ovid

ed in

an

appe

ndix

.

20