Additional Annex I Marine Habitat SACs

JNCC and the country conservation agencies are looking to identify additional SACs for four habitat types listed on Annex I to the Habitats Directive:

• Sandbanks which are slightly covered by seawater all the time;
• Reefs;
• Submarine structures made by leaking gases;
• Submerged or partially submerged sea caves.

These four habitats are subject to a scientific reserve in the EU Atlantic Biogeographic region, which means that additional SACs may be required for their adequate protection.

JNCC is identifying areas of these habitats in UK offshore waters and assessing whether they are suitable for designation as SACs. Sea caves are not known to occur in UK waters away from the coast and therefore offshore SACs are unlikely to be identified. For information on the identification of Annex I habitat SACs within 12 nautical miles of the coast, please contact the relevant country conservation agency.

If you would like information on the potential Annex I habitat shapefiles please contact our offshore survey team. These shapefiles are subject to licencing agreements and therefore to obtain them you will need to purchase licences for British Geological Survey UK Seabed Sediments (DIG SBS 250K) and SeaZone Bathymetry data either in the form of a SeaZone Hydrospaital or SeaZone Bathymetry Topic layer.