D2: Extent and condition of protected sites – land, water and sea

Short Description

Protected sites are areas of land, inland water and the sea that have special legal protection to conserve important habitats and species in England. These include our Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs), Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Ramsar sites. These area designations have been included as they focus on the protection of biodiversity and provide legal mechanisms for this protection. This indicator currently has 2 components: (a) extent of protected sites on land, freshwater and at sea and (b) condition of terrestrial SSSIs on land and water. Condition for terrestrial sites is assessed against relevant common standards agreed by the UK conservation agencies. Condition methodology for marine sites is currently under development.

Readiness and links to data

This indicator is not available for publishing in 2023 in a finalised form. An interim indicator is presented here that shows the condition of SSSIs in England (D2b). Data for this interim indicator are published annually as England Biodiversity Indicator 1 – Extent and condition of protected areas. Work is underway to review reporting for terrestrial and freshwater sites. Further work is required to implement a methodology for assessing the condition of marine sites.

Notes on indicator

In December 2022, Natural England and Defra identified a methodological issue with part 1a (extent of protected areas), which resulted in some historic overestimation. Both Natural England and Defra have worked closely together to resolve this issue. Consequently, part a of this indicator has been temporarily removed from the 2023 OIF Update. The issue has now been resolved and the latest data published on the England Biodiversity Indicator pages linked above. The newly published data will be reflected within the 2024 OIF update.

Indicator components

Figure Table

Figure D2b: Condition of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in England, 2003 to 2022

Source

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, ENV09 - England biodiversity indicators

Unit of Measurement

Percentage of site area

Footnotes

Site condition is the cumulative area assessed by 31 March of each year shown. As new assessments are completed, they replace the previous ones, so Figure D2b is a snapshot of the condition of the site network at a given point in time.

The gradual drop in the area of SSSIs in favourable condition between 2004 and 2010 was largely due to the application of the ‘Common Standard for Monitoring’ protocols which set more demanding targets for assessing the condition of some feature types as favourable. The step-change from 2010 to 2011 was due to the larger than average number of condition assessments being completed and recorded in the final year before the Public Services Agreement target deadline of 31 December 2010.

The linear increase in the area of SSSIs in favourable recovering condition between 2003 and 2011 was also driven by the 2010 Public Services Agreement target. A large number of condition assessments were carried out in the years running up to the target deadline and additional resources were used to ensure these sites had appropriate management schemes, such as agri-environment agreements, in place and could therefore be classed as recovering.

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Table D2b: Condition of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in England, 2003 to 2022

Year	Favourable condition	Unfavourable recovering condition
2003	43.98	12.96
2004	45.82	17.04
2005	45.02	22.34
2006	45.26	27.01
2007	44.84	30.60
2008	44.54	38.14
2009	44.02	44.39
2010	43.24	49.84
2011	36.57	60.05
2012	37.24	59.40
2013	37.55	58.56
2014	37.54	58.64
2015	37.50	58.44
2016	38.54	57.21
2017	38.71	56.05
2018	38.75	55.53
2019	38.89	54.66
2020	38.88	54.24
2021	38.36	53.00
2022	38.24	50.81

Source

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, ENV09 - England biodiversity indicators

Unit of Measurement

Percentage of site area

Footnotes

Site condition is the cumulative area assessed by 31 March of each year shown. As new assessments are completed, they replace the previous ones, so Figure D2b is a snapshot of the condition of the site network at a given point in time.

The gradual drop in the area of SSSIs in favourable condition between 2004 and 2010 was largely due to the application of the ‘Common Standard for Monitoring’ protocols which set more demanding targets for assessing the condition of some feature types as favourable. The step-change from 2010 to 2011 was due to the larger than average number of condition assessments being completed and recorded in the final year before the Public Services Agreement target deadline of 31 December 2010.

The linear increase in the area of SSSIs in favourable recovering condition between 2003 and 2011 was also driven by the 2010 Public Services Agreement target. A large number of condition assessments were carried out in the years running up to the target deadline and additional resources were used to ensure these sites had appropriate management schemes, such as agri-environment agreements, in place and could therefore be classed as recovering.

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Trend description for D2b

There has been a net decrease in the area of SSSIs in favourable condition; down from 44.0% in 2003 to 38.2% in 2022. While there has been a small increase in the area in favourable condition over the last 10 years (from 37.2% in 2012 to 38.2% in 2022), the figure has fallen slightly in the latest years. The area of SSSIs in unfavourable recovering condition has increased substantially from 13.0% in 2003 to 50.8% in 2022.

Assessment of change

There has been little or no change in the percentage of SSSIs in England achieving favourable condition over the short and medium-term assessment periods, while there has been a decrease (deterioration) over the long-term period.

Change since 2018 has also been assessed. There has been little or no change in the percentage of SSSIs in England achieving favourable condition since 2018.

Further information on this assessment, along with details on the methodology, is provided in the Assessment background page. Summaries by 25 Year Environment Plan goal and information on indicator links are presented in the Assessment results pages.

Table D2b: Assessment of change

Component	Subcomponent	Period	Date range	Percentage change	Smoothing function	Assessment of change
D2b	Favourable condition	Short term	2017 to 2022	-1.22	Unsmoothed	Little or no change
D2b	Favourable condition	Medium term	2012 to 2022	2.68	Unsmoothed	Little or no change
D2b	Favourable condition	Long term	2003 to 2022	-13.04	Unsmoothed	Deterioration

Note that percentage change in Table D2b refers to the difference seen between the first and last years in the specified date range. Assessment results presented here differ from those presented in the source publication (the England Biodiversity Indicators) because we use unsmoothed data and assess sites in favourable condition whereas the England Biodiversity Indicators use a 3-year average for the baseline (effectively smoothing the data) and assess sites in favourable and unfavourable recovering condition.

Indicator Metadata

Headline indicator status

Wildlife and wild places

Primary goal in the 25 Year Environment Plan

Thriving plants and wildlife

Relevant goal(s) in the 25 Year Environment Plan

Thriving plants and wildlife

Relevant target(s) in the 25 Year Environment Plan

Increasing the proportion of protected and well-managed seas, and better managing existing protected sites

Restoring 75% of our one million hectares of terrestrial and freshwater protected sites to favourable condition, securing their wildlife value for the long term

Position in the natural capital framework

Condition of assets - species and ecological communities

Related reporting commitments

The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended)

The Conservation of Offshore Marine Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended)

The Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (the Bern Convention)

Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR)

Convention on Biological Diversity Aichi Target 11

Geographical Scope

England

Status of indicator development

Interim

First Reported

2019

Last Updated

2023

Latest Data

2022