DAM - BREAKING NEWS

If you’d have told me fifteen years ago that the European beaver would one day return to England’s waterways (after their extinction in the 16^th century), I would never have believed you. However, in recent months and years, we have witnessed the triumphant River Otter Beaver Trial, a number of consecutive successful beaver re-introduction projects (albeit enclosed) across the country, and, most recently, the inclusion of legal protection for beavers under Schedule 2 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations (2017) , meaning it is now against the law to;

• deliberately injure, kill, capture or disturb beavers;
• damage or destroy a beaver breeding site or resting place such as a burrow, lodge or associated dam.

The country really has been gripped with ‘beaver fever’!

Beavers are considered to be ‘keystone species’ and ‘ecosystem engineers’, whereby their natural behaviours and activities (i.e. building dams, excavating canals) help drive dramatic landscape changes, including the restoration of diverse and dynamic wetland ecosystems. By pure coincidence, it is particularly poignant that we celebrate ‘World Wetlands Day’ as I write this.

Amongst other things, beavers can help alleviate downstream flooding by increasing water retention (mitigating the effects of drought), increase floral and faunal diversity, improve greenhouse gas sequestration, and arguably even support the local economy through enterprises such as wildlife tourism.

Given the above, both myself and my colleagues at PJC are over the moon to hear of beavers bouncing back in the UK, but I think it’s important to recognise that despite the fantastic work of so many individuals and organisations, we still have a long way to go (the government are currently refusing to make a decision on the issuing of wild release licences).

Beavers are incredible natural engineers. They cut down trees, build dams, and flood waterways… generally causing destruction (or restoration, depending on your perspective). This means that conflict between people and beavers is likely inevitable.

To ensure the speedy recovery of beavers back to our waterways, it is vital that relevant stakeholders (including those across the farming and fishery sectors) are properly consulted and that beaver reintroductions are managed sensitively.

To help mitigate any conflict, certain management activities can be undertaken under a licence from Natural England. Natural England has therefore engaged with stakeholders to develop three ‘class licences’ that can be used by registered individuals to respond to issues of conflict and intervene in beaver management swiftly.

Consequently, I have recently undergone an intensive beaver management training course delivered by Natural England and will very soon be awarded with a Beaver CL51 Class Licence. This licence will allow PJC to ‘modify or remove beaver dams, burrows and lodges’ at any time of the year, to allow activities that:

• prevent serious damage to livestock, animal feed, crops, growing timber, fisheries or any other property;
• preserve public health or safety;
• conserve wild animals or plants of conservation concern; and
• allow scientific or educational work to be carried out.

Beavers are now present on the River Stour, particularly around Canterbury, which is on the doorstep of our Kent office in Ashford. Over the coming years we will likely see beavers moving throughout the Stour catchment, maybe even making the leap to other river catchments in Kent.

With that in mind, if you live near a river, stream, lake, or man-made waterway, you could be neighbours to a family of beavers. Beavers, although very difficult to see, often leave some obvious field signs in their wake, including channels leading from the waterway, burrows, lodges, and dams, as well as gnawed or felled trees.

If you are concerned about beaver activity in your local area and would like to discuss some of their associated challenges and opportunities or talk about some of the beaver management options available to you, then please do get in touch with the ecology team here at PJC.