Published 13/10/2026 By William Turtle-Clark

An official report has confirmed that the route for the planned first phase of the Hereford Bypass is home to endangered hazel dormice, with great crested newts also recorded nearby.

A condition attached to the planning permission for the £45-million scheme—stretching from the A49 to just beyond the A465 southwest of Hereford—requires a "species and habitat protection and enhancement scheme" to ensure compliance with environmental law. Because the scheme was originally granted planning permission more than 10 years ago, fresh environmental surveys were required before work could begin, revealing that wildlife populations on the site had changed significantly over the decade.

To fulfill the planning condition, Herefordshire Council has submitted a 79-page Landscape and Ecology Management Plan (application 262987), prepared by contractor Graham Construction.

The report discloses that while baseline surveys conducted in 2014 found no evidence of hazel dormice along the route, follow-up surveys conducted last autumn recorded the protected species "throughout the length of the site". An application for a European Protected Species Mitigation Licence (EPSML) is currently under review by Natural England. Under the assumed licence, habitat works will include installing and monitoring at least 50 dormouse boxes and tracking the population for a minimum of 10 years following completion of the road.

Additionally, while initial 2014 assessments and updated 2025 surveys confirmed the presence of great crested newts in 7 ponds within 500 metres of the scheme boundary, the route itself provides "suitable terrestrial habitat". A separate EPSML application is pending with Natural England to allow the creation and monitoring of 2 new wildlife ponds.

The report notes that ongoing protected species assessments are also underway for bats, otters, water voles, barn owls, white-clawed crayfish, and non-flowering bryophyte plants.

However, the findings have drawn sharp criticism from Herefordshire Wildlife Trust. A spokesperson expressed concern that "not complying with due process and rushing to start work will compromise opportunities for protections, mitigations or enhancements," while also condemning the planned loss of ancient woodland, which the trust argued cannot be adequately replaced through proposed tree planting.