Brockwatch

Some people believe that if they know where a badger sett is located, the best way to protect it is not to tell anybody about it. This may work in some cases. However, we believe that if you know where a badger sett is located, the best way to protect it is to make sure that it is reported to us, so that we know where it is. There are two main reasons for this:

Threats from developments

New developments - housing and industrial estates, road building, quarries, landfill sites, and the laying of underground utitlies such as water mains and fibre-optic cable networks - are going on all the time. Many of these developments are announced in advance, giving us chance to check our records to see if any badger setts might be affected. Some developers and planning authorities make a point of consulting with us to find out whether or not badgers may be affected. If there are setts in an area where a development is planned, but we do not have those setts on record, we cannot take action to try to protect them. If they are discovered or reported to us after planning permission has been granted, our options are very limited.

Threats from persecution

We keep records of all incidents of badger cruelty in our area, so that we know where badgers are most at risk. We may be able to give a measure of protection to setts in high-risk areas - but only if we know where they are located. What's more, if a sett is not reported to us until after it has been attacked by badger diggers or filled in by a farmer, this can reduce our chances of getting a prosecution, as we will not have records showing that there was an active sett at that location before the persecution took place.