The plight of one of the nation’s rarest bats has been raised as a possible issue by campaigners opposing a potential monster housing allocation in Exmouth.
The Barbastelle bat, described as “one of the rarest mammals” by the Bat Conservation Trust, has been documented on land between Exmouth and Lympstone – which officials state is around 1.5 kilometres away from the controversial proposed housing site.
One campaigner, producing a pair of toy bats from his pockets at a recent council meeting, stated a Barbestelle bat had been found dead in his garden, and that its presence could be an issue that warranted consideration when deciding whether to include the so-called Exmo_20 site in East Devon District Council’s draft local plan.
The council is working to finalise its draft local plan, which identifies sites where it believes the notion of new homes would be acceptable. A site’s inclusion in the plan does not mean planning permission has been granted, but it means that developers can propose schemes in those locations.
The Exmo_20 site, as it is officially called in council documents, is near the Grade II*-listed St John in the Wilderness Church and the heaths, and has been included in the draft local plan in spite of a groundswell of opposition.
Now campaigners have raised the issue of the Barbastelle bat, stating that in a neighbourhood plan created by Exmouth Town Council in 2019, the bat’s presence was identified in an 800-metre buffer zone between the Pebblebed Heaths and the boundary at which development in Exmouth should stop.
Officials at East Devon have stated that the area of land being discussed by the town council relates to the green wedge between Exmouth and Lympstone, and is some 1.5 kilometres away from the Exmo_20 site, adding that their work to assess the location for flora and fauna had not indicated the Barbastelle was present.
“I unfortunately had a bat die in my garden last week, and I live a stone’s throw from the Exmo_20 site,” campaigner Matthew Hart told East Devon’s full council.
He added that the bat was “very susceptible to disturbance, loss of habitat and light pollution”, stating he believed the council was “ignoring the evidence” that pointed to the sensitivity of Exmo_20.
“It’s your irresponsible behaviour that is promoting the destruction of habitat which led to the need for the habitat’s regulations,” he said.
“Go on, vote for knowingly promoting the destruction of this endangered species,” he added, waving two toy bats in the air.
Devon CPRE (Campaign to Protect Rural England) has also raised broad concerns about the site.
“We are very concerned about this site being allocated for such a huge amount of development in such a sensitive area,” a spokesperson said, stating that the organisation’s submission to East Devon raised “environmental and biodiversity impacts”.
A spokesperson from East Devon District Council said the reference to the Barbastelle bat in Exmouth Town Council’s neighbourhood plan related to a different plot of land.
“We do not therefore consider that the neighbourhood plan is suggesting that Barbastelle bats are present at Exmo_20,” the spokesperson said.
“None of our assessment work has indicated the presence of Barbastelle bats within or near the Exmo_20 site.”
In East Devon’s draft local plan, the Exmo_20 site also offers a 400-metre buffer zone between new development and the Pebblebed Heaths, albeit a new road will travel through this.
Campaigners contrasted this with the 800-metre buffer zone alluded to in Exmouth Town Council’s document, but East Devon said 400 metres had been agreed with Natural England.
“We don’t know where the reference to an 800-metre buffer zone in the [Exmouth Town Council] neighbourhood plan has come from as we have always referred to 400m,” the spokesperson added.
“The 400-metre distance is based on evidence and research into how development can affect similar protected habitats.
“The Habitat Regulations Assessment for the new local plan found that a 400-metre buffer provides suitable mitigation against the potential impacts of development on nearby protected habitats.
“We are therefore proposing to keep the 400-metre buffer zone in the new local plan.”
Devon CPRE said in its submission against Exmo_20 that the 400-metre zone between the proposed housing site and the Pebblebed Heaths was “primarily an ecological safeguard”.
“It does not prevent landscape or visual harm, nor does it address impacts on character, tranquillity, or experiential qualities of the National Landscape.”
East Devon is aiming to send its draft local plan to government inspectors by the end of the year. The government ultimately decides is the plan is sound and can be adopted.
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