The report on sites designated as Areas of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) was published on the NIEA website.
NIEA Director of Natural Heritage Graham Seymour said: “ASSIs are the best sites for wildlife and earth science in NI. We have a duty to declare them, and we need to make sure that the special features they contain – things like an important rock exposure, a rich woodland habitat, or a rare species of plant – are in good condition. Monitoring is vital to this.
“This report is the culmination of six years work by scientific staff in NIEA. It details how these sites are faring, and the results will guide much of our management on ASSIs over the next few years.”
The study was part of a UK monitoring programme and deployed methods developed by specialists from across Britain and Northern Ireland.
Mr Seymour said: “We have managed to monitor all of the ASSIs in NI, with over 900 features being assessed – a significant achievement given the scale and complexity of the work involved.”
But while the report shows around two thirds of the features in ASSIs are in favourable condition, more work will have to be done to bring other nature conservation sites up to those standards.
He said: “The findings of this study are probably better than we could have anticipated when the programme of work commenced. However, a significant proportion of ASSIs are in an unfavourable condition and more remains to be done to improve these sites. Our long-term goal is to have all of the ASSIs in favourable condition, and NIEA is working hard with DARD and others to achieve this. The findings of the report will help to direct conservation effort where it is most needed”.
Notes-to Editors
- NIEA has a statutory duty under the Environment (Northern Ireland) Order to designate lands as Areas of Special Scientific Interest (ASSIs) if they are considered to be of special interest by reason of their flora, fauna, geological, physiographical or other features.
- NIEA is obliged by the Order to ensure that ASSIs are managed and protected in a way that secures their special interests. Monitoring is therefore required to ensure that NIEA is achieving this objective.
- At the end of July 2008, there were 257 ASSIs in NI, totalling over 94,000 ha.
- Site quality monitoring – or condition assessment - is a UK-wide process of assessing that the habitat and species interests of a designated site are meeting the objectives for which the site was declared.
- NIEA initiated a programme of condition assessment in 2002. The six-year rolling programme has been designed so that each feature on each designated site can be assessed and reported on at least once during the six yearly cycle.
- The full report of the first six yearly round of condition assessment can be found on the NI Environment Agency website
- For media enquiries please contact DOE Press Office 028 9054 0014 or out of hours call EIS Duty Press Officer on pager 076 9971 5440 and your call will be returned.
