N2K Wales

Title: Development of a programme for the management and restoration of Natura 2000 in Wales

Summary: Some 8.5% of Wales’s land area (including intertidal areas) is within Natura 2000 sites, with SACs covering 7.5% of the land area, and SPAs covering 4.8 % of the land area. Approximately 35% of Wales’ territorial waters are within Natura 2000 sites. These sites support a significant proportion of the habitat types and species of Community interest that occur in the UK. Wales has approximately 15% of the UK’s total Natura 2000 area (including current pSCIs in UK offshore waters).

A total of 53 natural habitat types and 28 species listed in Annexes I and II of the Habitats Directive respectively feature in Welsh SAC designations (graded C or above in the Natura 2000 standard data forms). In adddition, 38 species of birds are designated features of SPAs in Wales, including 15 species listed in Annex I of the Birds Directive and 23 regularly occurring migratory species. A number of other bird species form part of internationally important bird assemblages on SPAs. The most commonly cited issues affecting terrestrial Welsh SAC features are agriculture and land management, with grazing (under- or overgrazing) perhaps being the largest cause for concern on terrestrial areas. Overgrazing can lead to the loss of vegetation structure and the failure of more vulnerable species to reproduce and maintain populations. This in turn can lead to the loss of plant species and associated fauna. Very heavy grazing and trampling can also lead to the exposure of bare soil and erosion, destroying habitats.

Conversely, a lack of grazing can be a problem on lowland SAC habitats, where it is no longer economically viable to graze livestock on sand dunes, wetlands and other agriculturally unimproved habitats. Under-grazing commonly results in scrub encroachment, sometimes together with problems related to invasive species. Low-nutrient systems (such as sand dunes, bogs, heaths and oligotrophic waters) are particularly vulnerable to pollution of the land, air and sea. Nitrogen and diffuse phosphate represent a significant risk to the habitats and species within Natura 2000 sites. Other issues and risks to terrestrial sites include land drainage, burning, recreational disturbance and habitat damage, predation of species and spread of invasive non-native species. Unauthorised development is a risk at some sites. Marine areas afford open access for fishing and recreational activities. Even activities that occur within a management and regulatory framework are generally not restricted to specific areas.

While an activity may not currently occur on one area, there is no guarantee that it will not take place in the future. In addition to the impacts of fishing, risks to marine Natura 2000 sites and features include pollution (chemical, thermal and acoustic), invasive species and recreational disturbance. Intertidal and sea areas are generally less regulated than on land, so inappropriate access by people and vehicles, fishing or bait collecting are more difficult to control. The coastline and shallow inshore areas are also subject to change by natural and/or human-generated erosion and deposition which can radically alter habitats in relatively short periods of time. Climate change is expected to affect marine and terrestrial Natura 2000 habitats and species in years to come although the nature and extent of many of these impacts is still unclear. Temperature increases, warmer and wetter winters, and hotter and drier summers are expected. The aim of the project is to develop a programme for the management and restoration of Natura 2000 in Wales.

That programme specifically aims to:

• Address all of Wales’ Natura 2000 sites, both terrestrial and marine; Create a strategic, costed framework for making substantial progress in Wales towards the achievement of favourable conservation status of habitat types and species listed in Annexes I and II of the Habitats Directive, birds species listed in Annex I of the Birds Directive and regularly occurring migratory bird species;
• Focus on Natura 2000 as the cornerstone of Wales’s efforts to achieve favourable conservation status, providing a strategic approach to the management of Natura 2000 sites in Wales in accordance with the Habitats and Birds directives and also the implementation of measures both inside and outside Natura 2000 site boundaries;
• Achieve a high level of participation among relevant stakeholders in the public, private and voluntary sectors to ensure that implementation of the Natura 2000 programme begins as soon as possible;
• Draws up an 'After LIFE Implementation Plan' which provides a platform for seeking funding for Natura 2000 related projects from all potential sources, and integrating Natura 2000 funding into other financial instruments and policy areas;
• Establish conservation management priorities for Natura 2000 for the period 2014 -2020, and provide signposting for prioritising actions thereafter;
• Develop financing plans for site management and non-site based mechanisms, based on assessment of the opportunities provided by the range of domestic (public and private) and European financial instruments;
• Provide the primary and substantive basis for review and development of a Prioritised Action Framework (PAF) for Natura 2000 sites in Wales;
• Identify key knowledge gaps for managing Natura 2000 (including those relating to the conservation status of habitats and species, the nature of pressures affecting them, and the types of mechanisms that could be used for addressing those pressures) and identify projects to address those evidence gaps.

For more information, please visit EurOcean Knowledge Gate.