AN environmen- talist fears a roosting colony of bats could be wiped out by a developer's plans to build 13 new homes.

Residents have recently spotted pipistrelle bats flying in and out of a wooden outbuilding on a site in Scrub Lane, Hadleigh.

The land, containing an empty cottage and a bungalow, is subject to a planning application for three three-bedroomed and ten four-bedroomed houses.

Castle Point Council turned down the proposals in January on the grounds of overdevelopment and the failure to include enough parking space.

Now developer Swanvale Management has lodged an appeal against the council decision, with a Government inspector due to make a final ruling.

A previous application for 17 homes on the same site was refused on similar grounds last June.

Douglas Copping, 57, of the Crescent, Hadleigh, claimed preliminary work on the site would put the bats under threat.

He said: "Bat numbers are declining because their habitats are being developed. In this interim, period they are probably in mortal danger if developers go ahead with site clearance.

"I try to keep a watchful eye on the site, but it doesn't take too long for bulldozers to move in.

"There have been plenty of examples in the past, of sites being degraded and developers pleading ignorance when protected species are lost as a result."

Bats are legally protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981, which makes it illegal to kill, injure or disturb them or damage their roosts.

Mr Copping has already written to English Nature and made representations to the planning inspector alerting them all of the bat colony.

Bat Conservation Trust spokesman Jaime Eastham said a survey would now need to be carried out to verify if bats were roosting on the site.

If so, the developer would have to get a Habitats Regulations licence from the Govern-ment before carrying out any work.

Swanvale Management's agent was today unavailable for comment.