Environmental groups have long claimed that the use of heavy machinery to strip back hedgerows and banks twice a year is killing species including bats, hedgehogs and birds.
Recently, lobbyists put forward a set of proposals to the Constables’ Committee, calling for changes to the law.
The head of the committee, St Lawrence Constable Deidre Mezbourian, has said that she supports the changes but any move towards reform would have to be lodged as a proposition with the States Assembly.
On Wednesday, the campaigners will formally put their views to the Environment Department and the Constables’ Committee.
Under the Branchage Law, each of the Island’s parishes is inspected twice a year – throughout June, July and September – and landowners face fines if they do not cut back vegetation which faces public land.
Environmental campaigner Bob Tompkins, who is involved in lobbying for the changes, said that the group were calling for ‘radical changes’ to be made to the current laws.
Mr Tompkins said: ‘The method by which the hedges are being cut is devastating the Island’s biodiversity.
‘In addition to that, the methods which are currently in use are killing wildlife and destroying plants, as well as insects, which are vital to the Island’s environment.
‘We are actually losing species now, and if you take a look around the average hedge in the springtime, you can see the damaging impact by the lack of diversity.’
The proposals to be discussed on Wednesday include:
-Vegetation on the banques to be cut no less than eight to 12 inches, to allow low-growing plants to recover. Currently, as there is no limit in place, contractors can cut the plants down to ‘ground zero’.
-Greater flexibility of branchage dates, to be based on the needs and hibernation habits of certain wildlife, such as bats and hedgehogs, which change from year to year.
-Loose hedgerow cuttings should be cleared away following branchage to avoid the remains turning into mulch, which can pose a danger to road-users.
-Branchage guidelines should be consistent across parish websites and magazines.
Mrs Mezbourian added: ‘I became aware of the damage being done to the Island’s wildlife during various meetings with preservation groups in Jersey and I believe that there are some straightforward changes which could be made to better protect Jersey’s biodiversity.’
The Constable, who became involved in the discussions on potential reforms following a meeting with Dru Burdon, from the Jersey Hedgehog Preservation Group, late last year added: ‘We can still have branchage without scalping the Island’s hedgerows and eliminating certain species of wildlife.’
