Construction firm fined £40,000 for destroying bat roosts without permission

A construction company has been fined after illegally destroying bat roosts during the demolition of buildings at an industrial estate in north Wales.

FI Real Estate Management LTD, based in Chorley, appeared before Caernarfon Magistrates Court, having previously admitted a charge of destroying a wild animal shelter.

The offence relates to the demolition of buildings at Peblig Industrial Estate, where protected bat species were known to be roosting.

The court heard that a bat survey carried out in early 2023 identified three different species using the buildings on the site. Under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 and the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the company was required to obtain a European Protected Species licence before any demolition work could take place.

This would have included providing suitable replacement habitat to protect the bats.

Although the company had submitted redevelopment plans two years earlier, a proposed bat shelter was rejected by a senior biodiversity officer in June 2023 as unsuitable, with further changes required before work could proceed.

Despite this, the court was told the firm went ahead with the demolition in September 2024 without securing the necessary licence, destroying the bat roosts in the process.

The work had also been flagged as unauthorised by Cyngor Gwynedd’s planning department prior to the demolition.

Police investigation

A police investigation was launched at the end of 2024 following the council’s report.

The company was fined £40,000 and ordered to pay the full amount within three months.

Peter Evans from the rural crime team said the case highlighted the seriousness of wildlife offences.

He said:

“The demolition caused irreversible harm to a protected species.

“Developers and property owners have a clear legal obligation to carry out the necessary surveys and secure the correct licences before starting work and adhere to them.

“The conviction sends a clear message that wildlife crime is not a victimless offence, nor is it an acceptable cost of doing business.”