Its common for planning permissions to come with a pre-commencement condition requiring the approval of a Construction Ecological Management Plan (sometimes referred to as a CEMP or CEcMP) – not to be confused with a Construction Environmental Management Plan: even though the acronyms are often used interchangeably, the Environmental management plan typically deals with non-ecological matters such as construction waste and traffic management.
A Construction Ecological Management Plan sets out how any risk of harm to wildlife during construction will be dealt with. The most common matters covered are timing works to avoid nesting bird season and clearing vegetation in ways that minimises the risk of harm to wildlife. A good CEcMP will be developed in discussion with you and your team so that it dovetails with your intended build programme and methods.
For some projects it is helpful to provide a Construction Ecological Management Plan as part of your planning application. If a development is adjacent to a sensitive habitat such as a protected site, ancient woodland, rivers or wetlands, setting out in advance how they will be protected can help the planning authority to determine the application with confidence.