News | Solareye80 Bat Hat recognised in the CIEEM’s UK Bat Mitigation Guidelines

The Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM) is a professional body for ecologists and environmental managers in the UK and Ireland. They are known for producing guidance documents and best practice guidelines related to ecological and environmental management, including those concerning bats and bat mitigation.

Bat mitigation guidelines in the UK serve to address the protection and conservation of bat species, which are legally protected under various wildlife and conservation laws. In December of last year, the CIEEM released their latest guidelines (Reason, P.F. and Wray, S. (2023). UK Bat Mitigation Guidelines: a guide to impact assessment, mitigation and compensation for developments affecting bats. Version 1.1. Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management, Ampfield.) following a near five-year drafting process.

The guidelines have been produced by synthesising the most up-to-date research evidence and the expertise of bat ecologists, drawing on decades of experience. The length of time taken to create these guidelines reflects both the extensive amount of additional information available and the complexities of delivering successful bat mitigation and compensation.

Appendix 4 of the guidelines is made up of a collection of real-world case studies which demonstrate good practice on a wide range of factors. One such factor is mitigating the impacts of lighting on bats, and this is where you will find details of our case study ‘Urban riverside lighting’ (Case Study 37, pages 229-230). The authors of the guidance noted the reason for including our case study was that it demonstrated a sensitive and ‘bat-safe’ approach to lighting.

The project on which the case study was written involved using solar powered, cowled, waymarkers (Solareye80 Bat Hats) to create a “dark corridor” along the riverside to minimise disruption to the feeding patterns of a rare bat colony, whilst providing wayfinding illumination for pedestrians to safely navigate the footpath.

Will Clarke, Director at Solareye said “We couldn’t be happier to have our case study featured in the CIEEM’s UK Bat Mitigation Guidelines. We owe great thanks to Cody Levine, Ecology Team Leader, Worcestershire County Council, who was the ecologist responsible for the case study project and for its inclusion in the guidelines.”

“The Solareye80 Bat Hat ground light was born out of a desire to balance human activities with the preservation of wildlife and natural ecosystems. For it to be recognised by the CIEEM not only enhances the credibility of our product but also paves the way for broader adoption of responsible lighting practices in conservation efforts across the UK and beyond.”

The guidelines can be downloaded in full, free of charge from the CIEEM website.

Should you wish to find out more about the urban riverside case study, see full details here, or get in touch using our contact form.