ETC/BD Technical paper 3/2021: Protected area management in the EU - Supporting the advancement of the Trans-European Nature Network
11 Feb 2022
Sandra Naumann, Rebecca Noebel and Gregory Fuchs (Ecologic Institute, DE), Sabine Roscher (Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, MNHN, FR)
The new EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 sets out ambitious goals to further advance the protection of Europe’s nature. A central element of the Strategy is the target to increase protected area coverage on land and sea as well as the dedicated designation of strictly protected areas. Another focus lies on increasing connectivity between the natural European land and seascapes until 2030. Specifically, the strategy outlines that European protected areas shall be part of a broader Trans-European Nature Network (TEN-N) supported by transboundary cooperation. While a wealth of information on European terrestrial and marine protected areas is available, many aspects remain less known, such as qualitative descriptions about national and subnational implementation and management and the underlying reasons for similarities and discrepancies among the Member States. This study thus aims to bridge this knowledge gap by exploring national realities for the Member States, such as their individual approaches, challenges and successes in the management of protected areas. A semi-structured survey filled out by representatives of the following 12 Member States form the basis of the report: Austria, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden. ETC/BD partners and involved EEA staff conducted the survey in the individual countries. Following the structure of the survey, the report looks at the following themes, whose key results are summarised below: Designation procedures, Connectivity, Transboundary management and cooperation, Management effectiveness, OECMs and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.
