K4: Extent and condition of terrestrial and marine protected areas in the UK Overseas Territories
Short Description
The UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs) are home to a variety of spectacular and often unique marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Protected areas are a key tool for conserving the globally significant and, in many cases endemic, biodiversity found in the Territories. This indicator will have 2 components: (a) extent and (b) condition of UKOT protected areas. It will show changes in the coverage of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) across the UKOTs, from a 2020 baseline. Protected area extent data provided by UKOT governments and aggregated across UKOTs to produce percent coverages calculated for land and marine environments separately. The indicator will also demonstrate the condition of protected areas in the UKOTs, using aspects of protected area condition that can be assessed cost-effectively.
Readiness and links to data
An interim indicator is presented here that shows the extent of protected areas and OECMs across the UKOTs. Development of the condition aspect of this indicator is continuing, exploring options for assessing marine and terrestrial protected area condition and using 6 UKOTs as case studies. Information on how the data have been obtained and how the statistics have been calculated is available in JNCC Report Number 792.
Detailed statistics, including a breakdown of protected area coverage for each UKOT, is available on the JNCC website
We would welcome any feedback on these statistics, particularly on their usefulness and value, via 25YEPindicators@defra.gov.uk.
Notes on indicator
Results for the ‘UKOTs combined’ presented in the chart include 13 UK Overseas Territories: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands Group, Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, and the Turks and Caicos Islands. The British Antarctic Territory is not included since Antarctic protection is delivered through the Antarctic Treaty System. The UK Government and Mauritius reached a political agreement on 3rd October 2024 on the exercise of sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago/British Indian Ocean Territory. Subject to a formal treaty being agreed, the United Kingdom will agree that Mauritius is sovereign over the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia. Until the Treaty is signed, ratified and then comes into force, British Indian Ocean Territory will continue to contribute to this indicator.
The indicator includes protected areas and OECMs formally established up to and during December 2024, where these are implemented for and/or deliver biodiversity conservation. There is a wide range of protected area designation types within and across the UKOTs; the data reported represent the UKOT governments’ views on the composition of their respective protected area networks. Extent is measured using the outer boundaries of sites; the indicator does not assess the extent of management measures within protected areas and OECMs. Further constraints are described in JNCC Report Number 792.
Marine protection statistics represent PA and OECM coverage across the entire extent of each UKOT’s waters, mapped from the coast to the exclusive economic zone (or equivalent) using UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) maritime boundary data. Four UKOTs (Anguilla, Cayman Islands, Montserrat, Turks and Caicos Islands) lack formally agreed international maritime boundaries for parts of their waters, therefore approximate sea areas were calculated using median lines sourced from the UKHO.
The only formal changes to PAs reported in 2024 came from South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI), comprising a boundary update to the SGSSI marine PA, and the Cayman Islands with an extension to an existing terrestrial PA. These resulted in no detectable change (to 2 decimal places) to aggregated marine and terrestrial protection for the UKOTs combined, but a 0.02% increase in terrestrial protection within the Cayman Islands specifically. Further details can be found in Appendix 1 of JNCC Report Number 792.
Indicator components
Figure K4: Percent coverage of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures in the UK Overseas Territories, 2020 to 2024
Table K4: Percent coverage of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures in the UK Overseas Territories, 2020 to 2024
| Year | UK Overseas Territory | Marine | Terrestrial |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Anguilla | 0.09 | 0.51 |
| 2020 | Ascension | 100.00 | 19.54 |
| 2020 | Bermuda | 0.00 | 4.43 |
| 2020 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 99.96 | 37.94 |
| 2020 | British Virgin Islands | 0.06 | 2.69 |
| 2020 | Cayman Islands | 0.08 | 10.07 |
| 2020 | Falkland Islands | 0.00 | 2.93 |
| 2020 | Gibraltar | 89.13 | 36.37 |
| 2020 | Montserrat | 0.00 | 10.86 |
| 2020 | Pitcairn Islands Group | 100.00 | 82.49 |
| 2020 | Saint Helena | 100.00 | 38.05 |
| 2020 | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | 100.00 | 0.00 |
| 2020 | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia | 8.18 | 38.12 |
| 2020 | Tristan da Cunha | 0.01 | 44.97 |
| 2020 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.42 | 25.07 |
| 2020 | UKOTs Combined | 63.00 | 4.68 |
| 2021 | Anguilla | 0.09 | 0.51 |
| 2021 | Ascension | 100.00 | 19.54 |
| 2021 | Bermuda | 0.00 | 4.43 |
| 2021 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 99.96 | 37.94 |
| 2021 | British Virgin Islands | 0.06 | 2.69 |
| 2021 | Cayman Islands | 0.10 | 10.07 |
| 2021 | Falkland Islands | 0.00 | 2.93 |
| 2021 | Gibraltar | 89.13 | 36.37 |
| 2021 | Montserrat | 0.00 | 10.86 |
| 2021 | Pitcairn Islands Group | 100.00 | 82.49 |
| 2021 | Saint Helena | 100.00 | 38.05 |
| 2021 | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | 100.00 | 0.00 |
| 2021 | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia | 8.18 | 38.12 |
| 2021 | Tristan da Cunha | 91.20 | 44.97 |
| 2021 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.42 | 25.07 |
| 2021 | UKOTs Combined | 74.95 | 4.68 |
| 2022 | Anguilla | 0.09 | 0.51 |
| 2022 | Ascension | 100.00 | 19.53 |
| 2022 | Bermuda | 0.00 | 4.43 |
| 2022 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 99.96 | 37.94 |
| 2022 | British Virgin Islands | 0.06 | 2.69 |
| 2022 | Cayman Islands | 0.10 | 11.21 |
| 2022 | Falkland Islands | 0.00 | 2.93 |
| 2022 | Gibraltar | 89.13 | 36.37 |
| 2022 | Montserrat | 0.00 | 10.86 |
| 2022 | Pitcairn Islands Group | 100.00 | 82.49 |
| 2022 | Saint Helena | 100.00 | 38.05 |
| 2022 | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | 100.00 | 100.00 |
| 2022 | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia | 8.18 | 38.12 |
| 2022 | Tristan da Cunha | 91.20 | 44.97 |
| 2022 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.42 | 25.07 |
| 2022 | UKOTs Combined | 74.95 | 26.09 |
| 2023 | Anguilla | 0.09 | 0.51 |
| 2023 | Ascension | 100.00 | 19.53 |
| 2023 | Bermuda | 0.00 | 4.43 |
| 2023 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 99.96 | 37.94 |
| 2023 | British Virgin Islands | 0.06 | 2.69 |
| 2023 | Cayman Islands | 0.10 | 11.37 |
| 2023 | Falkland Islands | 0.00 | 2.93 |
| 2023 | Gibraltar | 89.13 | 36.37 |
| 2023 | Montserrat | 0.00 | 10.86 |
| 2023 | Pitcairn Islands Group | 100.00 | 82.49 |
| 2023 | Saint Helena | 100.00 | 38.05 |
| 2023 | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | 100.00 | 100.00 |
| 2023 | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia | 8.18 | 38.12 |
| 2023 | Tristan da Cunha | 91.20 | 44.97 |
| 2023 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.42 | 25.07 |
| 2023 | UKOTs Combined | 74.95 | 26.09 |
| 2024 | Anguilla | 0.09 | 0.51 |
| 2024 | Ascension | 100.00 | 19.53 |
| 2024 | Bermuda | 0.00 | 4.43 |
| 2024 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 99.96 | 37.94 |
| 2024 | British Virgin Islands | 0.06 | 2.69 |
| 2024 | Cayman Islands | 0.10 | 11.39 |
| 2024 | Falkland Islands | 0.00 | 2.93 |
| 2024 | Gibraltar | 89.13 | 36.37 |
| 2024 | Montserrat | 0.00 | 10.86 |
| 2024 | Pitcairn Islands Group | 100.00 | 82.49 |
| 2024 | Saint Helena | 100.00 | 38.05 |
| 2024 | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | 100.00 | 100.00 |
| 2024 | Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia | 8.18 | 38.12 |
| 2024 | Tristan da Cunha | 91.20 | 44.97 |
| 2024 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.42 | 25.07 |
| 2024 | UKOTs Combined | 74.95 | 26.09 |
Trend description for K4
As of the end of December 2024, protected areas and OECMs covered three-quarters (75%) of the marine environment in the UKOTs (remaining level since 2021), and covered more than a quarter (26.1%) of the terrestrial environment (remaining level since 2022). Protection has expanded over the last four years, with a 21.4% increase in terrestrial protection and a 12.0% increase in marine protection since the end of 2020 (the first year in the time series).
UKOTs’ waters are more than 300 times larger than their collective land area (5,749,254 km2 of sea compared to 17,741 km2 of land, excluding British Antarctic Territory) and, correspondingly the extent of marine protection (4,309,275 km2) in 2024 was also 3 orders of magnitude larger than for the terrestrial environment (4,628 km2).
Assessment of change
No assessment of change was undertaken for this indicator as a suitable time series is not yet available in the Outcome Indicator Framework.