Areas of England protected for their ecological significance have fallen behind on assessments, leaving conservationists and agencies in the lurch.
"The protected site network is critical natural infrastructure supporting wildlife, health and wellbeing, and a resilient economy," Richard Benwell, the chief executive of Wildlife and Countryside Link, told the Guardian. "But with over three-quarters of sites not inspected in the last five years, regulators will have no idea whether they are in good condition and the government won't know where it should be targeting its efforts in order to reach critical 2030 targets. … Wildlife could be disappearing in the dark while ecosystems break down. It's like shutting the door on a new power plant and not visiting for a decade."
What's happening?
Sites of Special Scientific Interest are designated by government agency Natural England to provide additional protections to sensitive regions. Together, these sites amount to roughly 8% of British land area. An interactive map of their locations is available here. The condition of these areas is rated during regular inspections, and those ratings range from destroyed to favorable.
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Definitely 👍 The problem is that over 10,000 of these sites haven't been inspected since 2019. Natural England says it conducts assessments at least every six years for most sites, but may take as long as once every 10 years in areas like woodland that experience slower rates of change. As of Natural England's last assessments, more than 5,000 of the sites (or 39% of the total) were rated as being in an unfavourable state.
Why are ecological assessments important?
Ecosystems are changing fast in the face of growing climate change. Assessments not being kept up-to-date could leave agencies and the public unable to react quickly enough to new problems emerging. Without intervention, vitally important biodiversity may be at risk.
What's being done about ecological assessments?
In the U.S. we've seen large land purchases help to preserve ecosystems, but federally mandated protections play a big role here too. The previous U.K. government pledged to protect 30% of the U.K.'s land and seas for nature by 2030, including the protection of Sites of Special Scientific Interest and other areas.
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"Protected sites are at the heart of our vision for making space for rare habitats and threatened species to thrive as well as green spaces for us all to enjoy," said a spokesperson for the U.K. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. "It's why this government has wasted no time in establishing a rapid review of our plan to deliver on our legally binding targets for the environment, including measures to improve the condition of protected sites. We will deliver a new statutory plan that will help restore our natural environment."
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