On Tuesday, 8 December Bellway Homes admitted damaging or destroying a breeding site or resting place for bats at a construction site in Greenwich.
The company was ordered to pay a fine of £600,000 with further costs of over £30,000. Bellway Homes also agreed to make a voluntary donation of £20,000 to the Bat Conservation Trust.
https://news.met.police.uk/news/company-handed-largest-ever-fine-in-relation-to-a-wildlife-crime-417227
Six hundred grand – ouch! That stings a bit – even for a house building firm. And it makes the whole industry think a bit more carefully about what it’s doing. And Bellway will loathe the headlines and won’t want to be caught again so will probably clean up their act.
Yes, I am thinking ‘If only we had a bit more of this on the grouse moors of upland Britain’. If only a tenth of these Hen Harriers had led to massive fines…
… and a tenth of the missing Golden Eagles
… and a tenth of the poisoned or missing Red Kites
… and a tenth of the Goshawks, Buzzards and Peregrines
… then raptor persecution would be much rarer in our world.
[registration_form]
Classical music reference?
Die Fledermous
(but with subsequent consequences)
As you quite rightly say Mark, this is more like it. I was pleased to read about this also in the press. As they say, “ a damn good job too”, hopefully it will all help to make those who wish to desecrate and destroy our wildlife and environment, think twice before they do so.
As you also say, we need many more penalties like this one, or greater, applied to the wildlife killings and moorland destruction that occurs with driven grouse shooting.
Hopefully this signals the start of much tougher penalties generally which hitherto have been pathetic. I am sure this fine will have been taken note of across the legal profession and may be by the shooters.
why is it only bats that seem to get taken seriously by wildlife law? the judgement is good mind you.
This is brilliant news, but how much of our wildlife legislation will survive long after Brexit I wonder? I hope this isn’t sharp teeth developing at last just before they’re pulled out. Fingers crossed this really is the beginning of meaningful punishment for wildlife crime. Having been amazed at how often developers forget that some trees on their sites are frequently protected and they get cut down by ‘accident’. It might help their memory if they had to sign an agreement beforehand that each tree under a protection order would cost them let’s say £50,000 if they’re subsequently lost through their actions or inactions.