Natura 2000 - the European network for nature

Last week I introduced the 'nature directives' – the EU Birds Directive and the EU Habitats Directive – and reflected on one particular example showing how scarce heathland birds and their habitats benefit from the 'Special Protection Area' (SPA) status conferred on Ashdown Forest through the Birds Directive. I want to explore this ‘European’ designation further and its relationship to important areas for wildlife in Sussex.

‘Natura 2000’ is the formal term for the European network of protected areas established through the nature directives. It comprises SPAs for birds and ‘Special Areas of Conservation’ (SACs) for habitats, other animals and plants. By the end of 2013, a total of 27,300 terrestrial and marine Natura 2000 sites had been established across the 28 EU Member States, amounting to just over 18% of the 4.3 million km² total land area. The nature directives provide the broad framework guiding Member States to identify and to designate under national legislation the SPAs and SACs which make up their contribution to the Natura 2000 network.

So how does Sussex fit into this European network? We have 20 Natura 2000 sites - six SPAs and 14 SACs, some of which extend across county borders into Hampshire, Surrey and Kent. The SPAs totalling about 9,000 hectares range from the south coast’s most important site for overwintering waterbirds (Chichester & Langstone Harbours) to the Rye Harbour/Dungeness complex hosting key breeding populations of terns, Mediterranean gulls, and wintering wildfowl, and inland to the heathland areas of Ashdown Forest and the Wealden Heaths. Sussex SACs total about 13,500 hectares. These include the diminutive 1.9ha Singleton & Cocking Tunnels site supporting Bechstein’s bats and barbastelles; the largest remnant patch of large-leaved lime woodland in southern England at Rook Clift (11ha); our own woodland reserves at Ebernoe Common and The Mens; and the chalk grasslands of Lewes Downs. Sussex also has a share in the vast 11,200 hectare Solent Maritime SAC which embraces a range of intertidal and coastal habitats extending, discontinuously, from Chichester to Lymington and the north-west coast of the Isle of Wight.

We recognise the importance of protected wildlife sites to achieving our goals, which is why we invest heavily in our own nature reserves. But our estate covers only a small fraction of Sussex (the 31 SWT reserves extend to 1,800 hectares – under 0.5% of the Sussex landscape). The Natura 2000 sites in Sussex play an important role in the network of protected wildlife areas, alongside sites recognised as nationally important (Sites of Special Scientific Interest, SSSIs) and locally significant (Local Wildlife Sites, LWSs).

Are SPAs and SACs better protected than SSSIs and Local Wildlife Sites? The simple answer is, in our experience, most definitely, yes. For instance, public authorities are obliged to take much greater care of the European sites, exercising greater scrutiny in the planning process to determine what the likely effects would be of any strategic plans (the local plans which focus on setting out areas for housing and other developments) and assessing the likely effects of any specific development proposals. The presumption is in favour of wildlife, and strict tests are applied to be sure that the habitats or species for which a Natura 2000 site has been established are not damaged, or, if a development is absolutely essential, then the effects on wildlife are properly and fully compensated. This is a powerful tool in the defence of nature, and something which we have come to value very highly indeed.

Visit our EU Referendum and Sussex wildlife webpage

The EU Nature Directives

The oldest piece of European Union environmental legislation is the ‘Birds Directive’. This dates back to 1979 and was implemented in the UK through the 1981 Wildlife & Countryside Act. It was joined in 1992 by the ‘Habitats Directive’. Together they are often now referred to as the ‘nature directives’ and are the only EU laws specifically designed to safeguard wildlife.

The nature directives target species and habitats which are most threatened at European level, including migratory birds which by their nature require an international approach to protecting the sites and habitats which ensure their survival. The two key mechanisms deployed through these laws are:

• Establishing a cohesive network of protected sites (Special Protection Areas –SPAs, under the Birds Directives; Special Areas of Conservation –SACs, under the Habitats Directive) across the Member States; and
• Requiring the strict protection of species from deliberate or negligent actions which would harm them or their important habitats (for all species in the case of birds; for a defined list of other animals and plants)

It’s clear to me that over the years the nature directives have been extraordinarily useful to the work of Sussex Wildlife Trust. The well-defined and well-tested protection afforded to SPAs and SACs is vitally important in safeguarding specific localities which are of national and local significance to wildlife as well as protecting the ‘European wildlife features’ for which they are designated. And the tag of ‘European Protected Species’ EPS carries a significant advantage when faced with developments which could have a seriously detrimental effect on wildlife and habitats outside the network of SPAs and SACs.

For example, Wealden District Council is currently inviting tenders for a piece of work to devise an ‘Ashdown Forest monitoring strategy and visitor survey’.  Why? It’s all down to the Birds Directive. The 3,207 hectare Ashdown Forest has been classified by the UK as a SPA for its populations of breeding Dartford warblers and nightjars. A key risk to these birds, which nest on or close to the ground, is disturbance in the breeding season from informal recreation: walkers, and in particular walkers exercising their dogs off the lead. Such unintentional recreational disturbance can result in nest failure and population decline, so the local authority has included strategic provisions in their Local Plan to reduce the potential impact.

It’s hard to imagine that, with the best will in the world, Wealden District Council would be paying quite as much attention as it is to the fortunes of the Dartford warblers and nightjars of Ashdown Forest if it wasn’t for the EU Birds Directive. This is a specific example of European Union policy and legislation that influences the charitable objectives of the Sussex Wildlife Trust. In this instance, the effect is positive, with public authorities having clear duties under the Birds Directive to put in place measures that will help to secure populations of scarce breeding birds and their habitats for the future.

In the event of the UK withdrawing from the European Union, then the nature directives will no longer apply. We will, of course, still have domestic legislation to protect wildlife (the 1981 Wildlife & Countryside Act, the 2000 Countryside & Rights of Way Act and the 2006 Natural Environment & Rural Communities Act etc.). The key question will be, what guarantee is there that remaining laws protecting nature will be enhanced to fill the gap left by the Birds Directive and the Habitats Directive or will the Government choose to weaken domestic legislation?

I’ll be exploring this and other aspects of the nature directives in the next couple of blogs.

Visit our EU Referendum and Sussex wildlife webpage

The EU Referendum

The EU referendum is only ten weeks away. I plan to write a series of weekly blogs focusing on those issues which affect wildlife and the environment to hopefully add some clarity to the burning question – in or out of the European Union.

As the formal Referendum Period starts, it’s fair to say that in all I’ve heard and read in the pretty intensive media coverage of the Referendum, the word ‘environment’ has appeared infrequently. ‘Nature’ and ‘wildlife’ seem to have been almost entirely absent from the public debate. Politicians and campaigners on either side of the debate are concerned with other matters. This is both disappointing and worrying, since the bulk of our modern environmental legislation originates from EU initiatives, and wider EU policies have significant consequences for wildlife on the land, in freshwater habitats and the seas around Sussex.

In my view, it is vitally important that nature should be a major consideration. I will be writing to both the designated ‘Leave’ and ‘Remain’ campaign lead organisations, asking the following questions:

To the ‘Leave’ campaign:

What mechanisms will be put in place following the UK’s withdrawal from membership of the European Union to ensure that the benefits to the environment, and in particular to wildlife in Sussex, conferred through membership of the EU are replaced and, where appropriate, enhanced?

To the ‘Remain’ campaign:

In view of the potential changes in the UK’s relationship with the EU based on the reform package negotiated by Mr Cameron, what guarantees are there that the benefits to the environment, and in particular to wildlife in Sussex, arising from our status as an EU Member State will be maintained and, where appropriate, enhanced?

I believe these points should be raised as widely as possible in order to bring wildlife and the environment into the EU Referendum debate. I will be putting these questions to Sussex MPs and the South East MEPs, and I will share their responses through my blog.

Over the next 10 weeks, leading up to the UK Referendum on membership of the European Union, I will be setting out Sussex Wildlife Trust’s experience of working with EU policies and legislation and our understanding of how these mechanisms impact on wildlife in Sussex.

I would never encourage you to vote one way or the other. I hope my blogs, to be published on a Wednesday each week, will help you to make an informed decision when the time comes to cast your vote.