Railway Embankment Badger Sett Closure

Project Overview

A railway embankment had become destabilised by extensive badger burrowing, with tunnelling reaching deep enough to threaten the integrity of the slope and the infrastructure it supports. Crown & Burrow was engaged to prevent further burrowing and stabilise the embankment, while ensuring every step met the strict legal protections afforded to badgers.

Badgers and their setts are protected under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992. It is an offence to damage, destroy or obstruct a sett, or to disturb a badger occupying one, without the appropriate authorisation. Any intervention therefore had to be carried out humanely, lawfully, and only under a licence issued by Natural England. The objective was clear from the outset: secure the embankment without harming a single badger.

Challenges

The embankment contained multiple active badger setts with an extensive network of tunnels running through the slope. This created two competing pressures. On one hand, the burrowing posed a genuine risk to the stability of the embankment and the safety of the railway. On the other, the badgers were a legally protected species that could not simply be removed or disturbed.

The principal challenge was achieving effective deterrence without causing any harm or distress to the animals. Securing the necessary licensing from Natural England added a further layer of complexity, requiring the work to be properly surveyed, justified and scheduled. Sett closures of this kind must also be carried out outside the badger breeding season, when dependent cubs may be present underground, which further constrained the timing of the works.

Solution

Crown & Burrow began by confirming the status and activity of each sett, then prepared the case for a licensed closure. Once Natural England licensing was secured, the team installed specialist one-way badger gates at the sett entrances.

These gates are engineered to allow a badger to push its way out of the sett but prevent it from re-entering, gently encouraging the animals to relocate to suitable habitat nearby. The gates were left in place across the required exclusion period to give every badger the opportunity to leave of its own accord. High-quality stainless-steel mesh was then used to reinforce the affected areas of the embankment, sealing the worked sections and deterring any future digging.

Throughout the closure, the welfare of the badgers remained the priority. The phased, licence-compliant approach ensured the animals were excluded calmly rather than trapped or harmed, in line with best ecological practice.

Results

The badger-proofing measures successfully stabilised the embankment and removed the risk of further structural damage from burrowing. The badgers relocated safely to alternative habitat without distress, exactly as the one-way exclusion method is designed to achieve.

The project was delivered in full compliance with wildlife protection regulations and the conditions of the Natural England licence. The outcome demonstrates how infrastructure can be protected and a legally safeguarded species respected at the same time, through careful survey work, proper licensing and humane, evidence-led methods. Crown & Burrow never harms badgers, and this railway scheme is a clear example of that principle delivering a durable, compliant result.