PROVISIONAL CONFERENCE PROGRAMME (may be subject to change without notice)
Sunday 12th March 2023
08.30 Conference Registration
09.00 Workshop 1: Wind Farm Bat Monitoring and Mitigation Pre and Post Construction
Presented by: Prof Fiona Mathews, University of Sussex and John Curtin, co-Chair Bat Conservation Ireland
This workshop will examine the ‘how to’ of pre-construction and post-construction bat surveys at wind farms and will include topics such as buffer areas, temporal variability in bat activity, carcass observation error, and the importance of good data interpretation. Appropriate mitigation strategies such as feathering and proactive curtailment will also be discussed. The workshop aims to provide both ecologists, and other stakeholders such as planners and engineers, with solid scientific approaches to addressing the problem of bat fatalities at wind turbines.
This workshop is approved for CPD purposes by the Irish Planning Institute: 1 CPD credit
10.30 Coffee Break
11.00 Workshop 2: Bats and Street Lighting
Presented by: Alex Naper Sabre Electrical Services and Dr Tina Aughney, Bat Conservation Ireland
Sabre Electrical Services, in conjunction with Bat Conservation Ireland will present an introduction to Street Lighting. The presentation will include basic design principles for public lighting, lighting technologies and standards as required by local authorities. The aim is to create an awareness of what lighting designers do, best practice design philosophy and tools available so that the best possible lighting solution is achieved for all, including bats. The presentation will include a demonstration of luminaires with LEDs of different Kelvin values (colour temperature); shields/louvres will also be demonstrated so that ecologists, planners, architects and other interested stakeholders can see what options can be used to help reduce impacts on biodiversity while still meeting EN standards.
This workshop is approved for CPD purposes by the Irish Planning Institute: 1 CPD credit
12:00 Option to attend either Workshop 3 or 4 which will run concurrently
Workshop 3: Bats and Heritage Structures
Presented by Dr Caroline Shiel, co-Chair Bat Conservation Ireland and other TBC
This workshop is aimed at those involved in the maintenance and restoration of heritage structures. This workshop will help make it easier for those working with the custodians of heritage sites to comply with the law to protect natural heritage and still carry out works. The workshop will begin with a short introduction to Irish bat species and their life cycles. We will explain the importance of heritage structures for bats and describe some of the processes of bat survey and mitigation with real life examples of successful outcomes for both built and natural heritage. This workshop is aimed at architects, planners and engineers and will also be of interest to ecologists involved in projects in heritage structures.
This workshop is approved for CPD purposes by the Irish Planning Institute: 1 CPD credit
Workshop 4: Using Imaging Technology for Bat Surveys
Presented by Dr Tina Aughney, Bat Conservation Ireland
This workshop is aimed at ecologists who carry out bat surveys and who would like to expand the range of tools they use to enable more accurate survey results. The technology will include thermal and infra red imaging systems and their supporting infrastructure for night-time surveys. We will also demonstrate the value of using endoscopes and mirrors for daytime assessment of structures. During the workshop we will examine the pros and cons of different methods for different survey conditions, costs of different systems, analysis of results and reporting guidelines.
13.00 Lunch
14:00 Running a Bat Walk or Talk
This workshop is open for all to attend. However, those considering putting themselves forward to run bats talks and walks should have very good knowledge of Irish bats and their ecology. This session is aimed at recruiting a panel of Bat Group members and ecologists across the island to take on Bat Walks and Talks on behalf of Bat Conservation Ireland or Bat Groups in their own region during the summer months. The following topics will be covered:
How to run a bat walk/talk (Andrew Fenner, Midland Bat Group)
Bat walk Health and Safety (Tanya Slattery, Bat Conservation Ireland Council Member and Limerick Bat Group)
Managing bat walk data (Mary Roberts, Mayo Bat Group)
15.30 Coffee break
16:00 Bat Groups
This session is aimed at Bat Group members who want assistance in efficiently running a volunteer group
Refresher on group admin – Marketing/Accounts/Best Practice, etc. (Dawn Quinn, Bat Conservation Ireland Administrator)
Key bat group tasks and roles (TBC)
Conference Ends 5pm