On the occasion of the 27th International Bat Night, Guillaume Lemoine, ECT’s Biodiversity Officer, reminds us of the fragility of this group of mammals.
Species close to us
Bats are anthropophilous species, adapted to living in the immediate vicinity of humans. Fortheir life cycles, they breed in attics and winter in our cellars .
Collectively, we need to work to improve wintering conditions for bats. By proposing to the parties involved in our projects that, wherever possible, they equip the artificial cavities identified during the field surveys as wintering sites for bats.
Species to protect during development
That’s why ECT pays particular attention to chiropterans when designing and building its projects. We aim to limit our impact, particularly during any logging operations, by identifying nesting trees .
The “compensatory” measures proposed and implemented are ambitious: in the long term, they will provide bats with favorable habitats for reproduction and hunting corridors. How? Through massive forest plantations and the diversification of woodlands and ecotones (hedges, meadows, edges).
True” compensatory measures are rare, however, as ECT’s approach is mainly one of avoidance. Our measures are based on the company’s willingness to support the implementation of high value-added projects for biodiversity.
As part of these actions, ECT works with expert consultants such as CMNF (Coordination Mammalogique du Nord de la France) and research consultancies.
A case study: the urban forest on the Van Pelt site in Lens
As part ofhe urban forest project on the Van Pelt site in Lens (62), carried out by ECT at the request of theEPF Hauts-de-France and local authorities, a first wintering site has been created from scratch in spring 2023.
Let’s hope that this one will be favorable to them and that it will eventually be occupied.
