Fish: advice for making planning decisions
How to assess a planning application when there are freshwater or migratory fish on or near a proposed development site.
Applies to England
This is Natural England’s ‘standing advice’ for fish. It is a material planning consideration for local planning authorities (LPAs). You should take this advice into account when making planning decisions. It forms part of a collection of standing advice for protected species.
You should read this guidance alongside protected species and development: advice for local planning authorities.
Following this advice:
- avoids the need to consult on the impacts of planning applications on fish in most cases
- can help you make decisions on development proposals
You might need a qualified ecologist to advise you on the planning application and supporting evidence if it’s likely that protected fish are present on or migrating through the proposed development site. You can find one using either the:
- Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environment Management (CIEEM) directory
- Environmental Data Services directory
You must check if the ecologist holds both:
- the appropriate and up-to-date Natural England species survey licence to carry out surveys for protected fish
- a permit from the Environment Agency to use fishing instruments other than rod and line
If Natural England and the Environment Agency are consulted on the same planning application, Natural England will refer to this standing advice and the Environment Agency will provide advice to protect fish populations.
How fish are protected
The following fish are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981:
- allis shad (Alosa alosa)
- twaite shad (Alosa fallax)
- vendace (Coregonus albula)
- whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus) - also known as powan, gwyniad or schelly
- European sturgeon (Acipenser sturio)
- burbot (Lota lota)
For allis shad and twaite shad, it is an offence to:
- intentionally kill, injure or take them
- intentionally or recklessly damage or destroy a structure or place used for shelter or protection
For burbot, vendace and whitefish, it is an offence to intentionally:
- kill, injure or take them
- possess or control them (or any part, alive or dead)
It is also an offence to intentionally or recklessly:
- damage or destroy a structure or place used for shelter or protection
- disturb them while they occupy a structure or place used for shelter or protection
- obstruct access to a structure or place used for shelter or protection
- sell, possess or transport them (or any part, alive or dead)
- sell, offer, or publish an advert to sell them
European sturgeon are European protected species (EPS) protected under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017. It is an offence to:
- deliberately kill, injure, disturb or capture them
- deliberately take or destroy their eggs
- damage or destroy their breeding sites and resting places (even including when European sturgeon are not present)
- sell, possess, control or transport them (or any part, alive or dead)
- sell, offer, or publish an advert to sell them
It is also an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to intentionally or recklessly:
- disturb European sturgeon while they occupy a structure or place used for shelter or protection
- obstruct access to a place used for shelter or protection
- sell, possess or transport them (or any part, alive or dead)
- sell, offer, or publish an advert to sell them
Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) have recently been separated from European sturgeon but have the same protections.
Special areas of conservation (SACs), sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) or Ramsar sites have features of special interest for freshwater or migratory fish, such as:
- Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
- bullhead (Cottus gobio)
- lamprey (brook, river and sea) (Petromyzontiformes)
- spined loach (Cobitis taenia)
- European eel (Anguilla anguilla)
- allis shad (Alosa alosa)
- twaite shad (Alosa fallax)
- brown trout (Salmo trutta)
You can check if the development proposal is on a protected site using MAGIC map.
Many fish species are also included on the list of species of principal importance in England under section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act (2006).
In addition, some fish species are listed as endangered and critically endangered on the International Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Great Britain red list. Find out more by checking on the consolidated list of red listed species on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee’s website. These documents may not be accessible to assistive technology.
You must consider the conservation of all fish species as part of your planning decision. Find out more about your biodiversity duty.
The developer must comply with the legal protection of freshwater and migratory fish and their habitats under:
- Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
- Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975
- the Eels (England and Wales) Regulations 2009
- the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017
When to ask for a survey
You should ask for a survey if any of these conditions apply:
- historical or distribution records show that protected freshwater or migratory fish may be present at the development site
- the habitat at the development site is likely to support protected fish species - you can search the National Biodiversity Network Atlas by species and location
Absence of a record does not mean there are no fish. It could mean there is no survey data available for that location.
The Environment Agency is responsible for protecting fisheries. You should tell them of any survey activity if the development proposal is likely to affect inland, estuary, coastal waters and fish populations.
You should make sure the developer has consulted the owner of any fishing rights attached to a water body. Usually this is the landowner, but it can also be a third party, such as an angling club.
You must check if the ecologist is qualified and experienced to carry out surveys for freshwater or migratory fish. CIEEM publishes advice on the valid age of ecological reports and surveys.
The ecologist should also follow the Biodiversity code of practice for planning and development (BS 42020:2013). Find out more about the code by reading the British Standards Institute’s Smart guide to biodiversity in planning and development These documents may not be accessible to assistive technology.
Types of survey
Appropriate survey techniques are listed in Table 1.
Table 1: Fish survey techniques and where they should be used
| Survey technique | Where it should be used |
|---|---|
| Bankside counts | slow-flowing clear water without much vegetation |
| Underwater counts using snorkelling, scuba diving, cameras or remotely operated underwater vehicles | to measure species diversity and numbers |
| Electrofishing | shallow water bodies |
| Seine netting | to sample larger, deeper water bodies |
| Trawl netting | to survey large areas quickly |
| Trapping (fyke nets or similar) | where the site conditions or potential species present mean other methods cannot be used effectively |
| Hydroacoustic counts | used in combination with other methods to determine abundance in deep water bodies |
| Rod and line capture | used in combination with other methods to determine species presence, target particular species or where conditions prevent effective use of other techniques |
Other survey methods, such as eDNA, can also support survey data.
Assess the effect of development on fish
Developers should submit information with their planning application on how their development proposal avoids or mitigates harm to fish.
The development proposal could affect freshwater or migratory fish if, for example, it :
- introduces silt into a water body, particularly where spawning habitats, such as gravel beds, are present
- interferes with spawning activity
- interferes with the migration of fish, such as creating barriers or obstructing fish passes
- creates a risk of entrainment - when a fish is displaced by a drainage system, or water diversion, created as part of the development
- creates a risk of impingement – when fish get trapped against a water intake screen (where water is taken into the development site) and are unable to swim away
- creates excessive light or noise
- reduces water quality
- affects water levels or flow levels in a water body
- changes the morphology (shape and form) of a water body
- changes the vegetation in a water body or on its bankside
- introduces non-native species to freshwater habitats
The developer may need a wildlife licence if their activities are likely to affect fish.
Avoidance, mitigation and compensation measures
Where possible development proposals should avoid negative effects on fish. Where this is not possible, the developer will need to include adequate mitigation or, as a last resort, compensation measures in their development proposal to allow you to make a planning decision.
Look for the following examples of avoidance, mitigation or compensation plans in the development proposal:
- changing the timing of the project
- changing the layout of the scheme to keep the water body and surrounding habitat intact
- ensuring that work on water bodies does not create physical, chemical or behavioural barriers to fish movement
- trapping sediment to avoid introducing it to water
- changing work practices or construction methods to avoid excessive noise and illumination (especially at night) and impacts on water quality
- avoiding working within the water body and limiting the length of bank working area
- improving or creating habitats
- maintain biosecurity measures
If there is no reasonable alternative habitat close by, the development proposal could include capturing fish and moving them to a different location, known as translocation. This is a last resort option due to the risk of transferring disease, invasive and non-native species between water bodies. The developer must have a permit from the Environment Agency to move all freshwater and migratory fish.
For more information on mitigation plans and compensation measures, read Protected species and development: advice for local planning authorities.
Planning and licence conditions
The developer may need a protected species mitigation licence if their activities are likely to affect fish. If activities are likely to affect European sturgeon, the developer must apply for an EPS mitigation licence.
You may also need to add mitigation or compensation strategies as a condition of planning permission. Before you can grant planning permission, you must:
- work with the relevant ecologist to make sure these conditions do not conflict with the requirements of the wildlife licence
- be confident that Natural England will grant a wildlife licence - read section 4 of Protected species and development: advice for local planning authorities
You do not need to consult Natural England on the wording or discharge (approval) of any conditions you impose on a development proposal. Natural England is unable to provide advice on this.
Natural England will not generally issue a licence until planning conditions relating to protected species have been discharged. This applies to conditions that are intended to be and capable of being discharged before development begins.
Natural England will only confirm if you need a licence when the development proposal is a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP).
Enhance biodiversity
To meet your biodiversity duty, you should suggest ways for the developer to:
- create new or enhanced habitats on the development site
- achieve improvements in biodiversity through good design
- follow other relevant plans and strategies for nature
Site management and monitoring
You should consider the need for site monitoring and management. These measures are likely to be needed by protected species licences.
A site monitoring plan should make sure:
- water quality is maintained or improved
- water flow is maintained
- fish populations remain healthy
- there is no interference with the fish after development
- in-channel vegetation
- the water body substrate
This can also include additional survey work to check that mitigation measures are working as intended, followed by remedial work if needed.
Updates to this page
-
This guidance has been improved and updated. This includes the following changes. In the section on how the species are protected, the list of offences has been updated to match the relevant legislation. In ‘Planning and licence conditions’, new wording has been included about planning conditions, including the discharge of conditions and issuing of licences. In ‘How fish are protected’, the protections of European sturgeon (Acipenser sturio) and Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) have been clarified. The advice now includes reference to the following protected fish - burbot (Lota lota), allis shad (Alosa alosa), twaite shad (alosa fallax) and brown trout (Salmo trutta).
-
Page updated because of new requirements for protected species mitigation licences for animals and plants in schedule 5 and schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (brought in by the Environment Act 2021).
-
First published.