1. Natura 2000 & Article 17 databases: their potential use in the frame of the Prioritised Action Framework (PAF)
Frank Vassen, Unit D3 – nature conservation, DG ENV, European Commission
Brussels, 4 December 2017

2. Natura 2000 database
EU-wide compilation of the most recent national databases submitted by Member States, published once per year by the EEA
published version is complete, except for "sensitive species"
extensive quality assessment in terms of completeness and coherency (QAQC reports uploaded on reportnet)

3. Natura 2000 – information on habitat types
information on habitat area available for most Member States (since new Standard Data format), but there are still some gaps
not all information on habitat is up-to-date & not all Member States are interpreting their reporting obligation on habitats in the same way
limited feasibility of quality checking of area figures at EU level; possible error detection where:
sum of all habitat areas in SDF is larger than the total site area !
major inconsistencies between "relative area" (A, B, C) and absolute area (in ha) of SDF habitat information
many SDF habitat area figures correspond to 1% of total site area !

4. example: HT 6230 – Nardus grasslands

5. Article 17 - database
EU-wide compilation of national databases submitted by Member States in 2013, published once per year by the EEA
published version is complete, except for distribution data on "sensitive species"
extensive quality assessment in terms of completeness and coherency of data

6. Article 17 – information on habitat types
Article 17 reports include quantitative (area) and qualitative information (conservation status assessment + trends) that is relevant for quantification of needs and prioritization in the PAFs:
Structures and functions: improving management/quality of the habitat
Area/range: need for habitat restoration
Quantitative information on area is proportional to the financial needs
limited feasibility of quality checking of Article 17 habitat area figures at EU level; some errors in national databases are however evident:
where sum of Art. 17 habitat areas exceeds the total national land area!
where sum of Art. 17 habitat areas for a group of habitats (f. ex. forests) exceeds the national land area covered by that ecosystem (based on Corine land cover, Copernicus, etc.)

7. Corine Land Cover: % of land cover classes inside Natura 2000
Source: EEA, to be published soon

8. Total Annex I habitat area as a % of the national land territory

9. Linking measures to "Favourable conservation status"
Improve habitat quality: Measures taken to improve the quality of the current area of habitat, aimed at optimizing its "structures and functions"/ its quality
Increase the area of a habitat: Measures taken to increase the total extent of habitat, aimed at achieving the "Favourable Reference Area"
Increase the range of a habitat: Measures taken to create new habitat areas outside of the current range of occurrence of the habitat, aimed at increasing the range towards the "Favourable Reference Range"

10. A fictive example for a habitat type / a group of habitat types
Conservation status of a given area of habitat (Article 17 report):
Additional area required (Article 17):

11. Results per Member State

12. An example: Sweden

13. Thank you !