Beavers are key to creating flourishing wetland ecosystems and provide a wealth of benefits for nature and people by reducing flooding, capturing carbon with their dams, creating new habitats, and more . A change in legal status will make it an offence to deliberately capture, kill, disturb, or injure beavers, or damage their breeding sites or resting places – without holding the appropriate licence.
This legislation will come into force on 1 st October, and alongside this Natural England is developing guidance on the management of beavers, which will set out which actions will or will not require a licence, and where people can go for advice.