Rationale and criteria for the identification of nationally important marine nature conservation features and areas in the UK. Version 02.11.
(2002)
Prepared for the Review of Marine Nature Conservation by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the statutory nature conservation agencies and Wildlife and Countryside Link
Connor, D.W., Breen, J., Champion, A., Gilliland, P.M., Huggett, D., Johnston, C., Laffoley, D. D'a., Lieberknecht, L., Lumb, C., Ramsey, K., & Shardlow, M.
Background
This paper has been prepared to contribute to
the work of Defra's Review of Marine Nature Conservation (RMNC). At
the 11th meeting of the RMNC Working Group in June 2002 it was
agreed that the JNCC would take forward the work identified in the
RMNC work programme on nationally important sites, habitats and
species. This was to be undertaken, in the first instance, as
follows:
- Preparation, through a sub-group of the RMNC, of a 'criteria'
paper for the identification of nationally important sites,
habitats and species, based on the paper submitted to the RMNC by
Laffoley et al. (2000a). The paper should include guidance on
applying the criteria and should be presented to the RMNC working
group at its 12th meeting in November 2002.
- The refined criteria would be applied to the Irish Sea as part
of the Irish Sea Pilot Scheme, with the aim of mapping nationally
important sites, species and habitats for that area by March
2003.
- The Pilot would test the effectiveness of the draft criteria
and further refinement would be made to them in the light of
lessons learned.
This paper builds upon the approaches given in Laffoley et al.
(2000a, b), reports for the RMNC that outlined the nature and role
of nationally important seascapes, habitats and species in the
context of developing a framework for marine nature conservation
and outlined criteria for identifying them.
Scope of the paper
This paper further elaborates on the purpose of identifying
marine features (see section 4.2 regarding use of the term
'feature') and areas of national importance as outlined in Laffoley
et al. (2000a), providing more detailed criteria and offering an
approach to the application of these criteria.
The paper is offered as an outline rationale and suite of
criteria, together with indicative threshold values for using these
criteria. It has drawn extensively upon existing work in other
fora, notably OSPAR, IUCN, SSSI guidelines and the EC Habitats
Directive, applying their approaches in a manner considered most
suitable for use at national level. Drawing from a variety of
sources (both for overarching principles and aims and in the detail
of the criteria), aiming to cover the entire range and scale of
marine features in the UK, and the need to use assessments at
national, regional (i.e. north-east Atlantic) and even global
level, mean there inevitably remains some need for further
refinement. The approach requires testing to ensure it is
appropriate for use at a UK level and across the wide range of
marine features it is intended to encompass.
This is a working paper : The criteria, particularly the
threshold values, and the method of their application remain to be
tested and will be adjusted in the light of these
tests.
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Please cite as: This report should be quoted as: Connor, D.W., Breen, J., Champion, A., Gilliland, P.M., Huggett, D., Johnston, C., Laffoley, D. d'A.., Lieberknecht, L., Lumb, C., Ramsay, K., and Shardlow, M. 2002. Rationale and criteria for the identification of nationally important marine nature conservation features and areas in the UK. Version 02.11. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee.(on behalf of the statutory nature conservation agencies and Wildlife and Countryside Link) for the Defra Working Group on the Review of Marine Nature Conservation.