Key Scottish Environment Statistics 2016
Reference document offering information on a wide range of environmental topics, covering key datasets.
References
Background
1 European Environment Agency
DPSIR
framework
Population and Households
2 Population estimates are rebased with each census to
ensure a consistent time series. Estimates for 2002 to 2010 were
revised using information from the 2011 Census. The population
estimates from 2011 onwards are all based on the 2011 Census.
3 National Records of Scotland (2016).
Mid-2015
Population Estimates Scotland.
4 National Records of Scotland (2016).
Estimates
of Households and Dwellings in Scotland, 2015.
5 National Records of Scotland (2015).
Population
Projections of Scotland (2014-based).
6 National Records Scotland (2014).
Household
Projections for Scotland (2012 based).
7 National Records of Scotland (2015).
Scotland's
Population 2015 - The Registrar General's Annual Review of
Demographic Trends
Gross Domestic Product
8 The estimates from the Scottish Government's Quarterly GDP
Publication measure GDP at basic prices,
also referred to as Gross Value Added (GVA), which does not
account for taxes or subsidies on products.
The GDP index is produced in constant (2013) prices, meaning
that the effect of price changes is removed
from the estimates, and is seasonally adjusted.
Motor Traffic on All Roads
9 Salisbury, E., Thistlethwaite, G., Pang, Y., & Misra,
A. (2015). National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (2015).
Air
Quality Pollutant Inventories for England, Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland: 1990 - 2013.
10 More information is available in
Transport
and Travel in Scotland 2015 and
Scottish
Transport Statistics 2015.
11 Scottish Government.
Scotland's
People Annual Report: Results from 2014 Scottish Household
Survey.
12 Department for Transport.
Vehicle
Licensing Statistics: 2015.
Electricity Generation by Source
13 Includes wind, wave, solar power, thermal renewables and
hydroelectric (natural flow).
14 Pumped storage is not a renewable source of energy
because it uses electricity produced by other means to create a
store of hydrological power.
15 Scottish Government (2009).
Climate
Change (Scotland) Act 2009.
16 The Scottish Government has set a target for renewable
sources to generate the equivalent of 100% of Scotland’s
gross annual electricity consumption by 2020, with an interim
target of 50% set for 2015.
17 The amount of electricity generated minus net exports
(but including losses).
Public Attitudes
18 Scotland Performs.
National
Indicator: Improve access to local greenspace.
19 Scottish Government Social Research (2009).
Scottish
Environmental Attitudes and Behaviours Survey 2008 (SEABS
’08)
20 Scotland Performs.
National
Indicator: Increase people's use of Scotland's outdoors.
Global Atmosphere
21
Climate Change 2014:
Synthesis Report, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC), 2014.
22
Climate
Change (Scotland) Act 2009.
23
Climate
Change (Annual Targets) (Scotland) Order 2010 (2010-2022)
24
Climate
Change (Annual Targets) (Scotland) Order 2011 (2023-2027)
25 Scottish Government (2015).
Sustainability
Purpose Target
26 Scottish Government (2015).
Scotland
Performs National Indicator 47: Reduce Scotland’s Carbon
Footprint
Annual Mean Temperature
27 The 1961-1990 averages used in this publication are
calculated from 5 km grid squares and differ from the averages
published by the Met Office which are based upon 1 km grid squares.
The average used is temperature = 7.03°C. Although 1971-2000
and 1981-2010 averages are available, 1961-1990 averages are used
for comparability with UK Climate Projections 2009 (see next).
28
UK Climate
Projections 2009. The projected changes, based on the 1961-1990
averages, use the medium emissions scenario climate model, and are
for the 2080s, i.e. a 2071-2100 average. The Scottish regions are
North, West and East Scotland, based on Met Office climate regions.
29
Climate Change 2014:
Synthesis Report, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC), 2014.
Annual Precipitation
30 The 1961-1990 averages used in this publication are
calculated from 5 km grid squares and differ from the averages
published by the Met Office which are based upon 1 km grid squares.
The average used is precipitation = 1,390.57 mm. Although 1971-2000
and 1981-2010 averages are available, 1961-1990 averages are used
for comparability with UK Climate Projections 2009 (see next).
31
UK Climate
Projections 2009. The projected changes, based on the 1961-1990
averages, use the medium emissions scenario climate model, and are
for the 2080s, i.e. a 2071-2100 average. The Scottish regions are
North, West and East Scotland, based on Met Office climate regions.
For each estimate, the smallest 10% probability level and the
largest 90% probability level as well as the most likely estimate
are given, to show the spread of possible outcomes.
32 For example, projected changes in the East of Scotland
are reduced precipitation of 17% (-33% to 0%) in the summer months
(June to August) and an increase of 12% (1% to 25%) precipitation
in winter months (December to February).
33Winter and summer precipitation figures are available on
Scottish Environment Statistics
Online.
34
Climate Change 2014:
Synthesis Report, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC), 2014.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions by Sources
35 Emissions of each
GHG are weighted by the
global warming potential (
GWP) of the
gas.
GWP accounts
for the potency of the gas as a contributor to atmospheric warming.
Therefore, while sulphur hexafluoride is released in small
quantities, those emissions are adjusted to better reflect the
strong warming effect it has.
GWPs of all
gases are expressed as tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent to
permit ready comparison.
36 For the purposes of reporting, greenhouse gas emissions
are allocated into sectors. The Official Statistics release “
Scottish
Greenhouse Gas Emissions 2014” contains a categorisation
of each sector.
37 Emissions from offshore oil and gas installations are not
included in the Scottish inventory, and are reported as
“unallocated” within the disaggregated UK inventory.
38
IPCC Fifth Assessment
Report 2013.
Scotland’s Carbon Footprint
39 Emissions of each
GHG are weighted by the
global warming potential (
GWP) of the
gas.
GWP accounts
for the potency of the gas as a contributor to atmospheric warming.
Therefore, while sulphur hexafluoride is released in small
quantities, those emissions are adjusted to better reflect the
strong warming effect it has.
GWPs of all
gases are expressed as tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent to
permit ready comparison.
40 The Carbon Footprint is part of a small set of low carbon
attitude and behaviour-related indicators set out in ‘
Low Carbon Scotland: A
Behaviours Framework’ and is used to inform the Scottish
Government National Indicator
Reduce
Scotland's carbon footprint.
Column Ozone Measurement
41 Stratospheric ozone is not the same as tropospheric
(ground level) ozone, which is a damaging oxidant.
42 United Nations Environment Programme.
Montreal
Protocol.
Air Quality
43 Through analysis of modelled background PM2.5
concentrations (particles less than 2.5 µm in diameter), it
is estimated that the effects on annual mortality in 2010 in
Scotland were over 2000 deaths and over 22,000 associated
life-years lost. (Public Health England (2014).
Estimating
local mortality burdens associated with particulate air
pollution.
44 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,
Scottish Executive, Welsh Assembly Government & DOE Northern
Ireland (2007).
The Air
Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Volume 1.
45 Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of
HMSO. © Crown copyright and database right 2015. All rights
reserved. Ordnance Survey Licence number 100024655. Scottish
Government GI Science & Analysis Team, August 2015,
Job5706ab
Emissions of Air Pollutants
46 PM10 - particulate matter smaller than 10 microns.
Emissions of Sulphur Dioxide and Nitrogen Oxides from Large
Combustion Plants
47 Large combustion plants have a rated thermal output of
over 50 megawatts. In 2015, there were 45
LCPs in
Scotland, down from 52 in 2014.
48 The
Large
Combustion Plants Directive (LCPD), which has now been
incorporated into the Industrial Emissions Directive (2010/75/EC),
called for a 60% reduction in LCP SO2 emissions by 2003 and a 30%
reduction in
LCP
NOx emissions by 1998,
from a 1980 baseline. By 2012, total UK emissions of SO2 were 91%
below 1980 levels and total UK emissions of NOx were 60% below 1980
levels, according to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs Environment Statistics website.
Particulate
(PM10
) Concentrations
49 All values displayed in the chart are at or above the 50%
data capture rate. If the data capture rate for any site is below
50% then the data will not be included in the chart. Where this
occurs, information will be provided as appropriate in further
footnotes. When assessing whether sites met the Air Quality
Strategy objectives, only those sites with a data capture rate of
at least 75% are included.
50 The data capture rate was low (under 50%) for Glasgow
Centre in 2010 and so will not be included in any charts or tables.
The 2010 figure for Glasgow Centre is:
PM10 = 23.
51 This chart contains an illustrative sample of automatic
monitoring sites which have been selected based on their
geographical location, how long they were in operation, site type
(generally ‘kerbside sites’ are not included) and
whether there were consistently high data capture rates. This is
mainly to allow the data to be presented clearly, as there are too
many monitoring sites to clearly present in one chart. The overall
trends are discussed in the ‘Trend’ section.
52 National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (2016).
Air
Quality Pollutant Inventories for England, Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland: 1990 - 2014.
53 In 2015, PM10 concentration was measured at 76 automatic
monitoring sites in Scotland, 64 of which had a data capture rate
of at least 75%. Of the sites with data capture under 75%, none
exceeded the 40 µg/m3
UK
AQS. Data for these
sites are available on the
Scottish Air
Quality Database.
54 Edinburgh Salamander Street is not included in the chart
as it did not meet the criteria for inclusion.
Nitrogen Dioxide Concentrations
55 All values displayed in the chart are at or above the 50%
data capture rate. If the data capture rate for any site is below
50% then the data will not be included in the chart. Where this
occurs, information will be provided as appropriate in further
footnotes. When assessing whether sites met the Air Quality
Strategy objectives, only those sites with a data capture rate of
at least 75% are included.
56 The data capture rates were low (under 50%) for Glasgow
City Chambers and Glasgow Byres Road in 2011 and for Aberdeen Errol
Place in 2013; therefore, these figures will not be included in any
charts or tables. The 2011 figures for Glasgow City Chambers and
Glasgow Byres Road are NO2 = 50 and NO2 = 42 respectively; and the
2013 figure for Aberdeen Errol Place is NO2 = 20. In 2015, a
sampling fault led to all NO2 data for Edinburgh St Leonards being
rejected.
57 This chart contains an illustrative sample of automatic
monitoring sites which have been selected based on their
geographical location, how long they were in operation, site type
(generally ‘kerbside sites’ are not included) and
whether there were consistently high data capture rates. This is
mainly to allow the data to be presented clearly, as there are too
many monitoring sites to clearly present in one chart. The overall
trends are discussed in the ‘Trend’ section.
58 In 2015, concentrations of nitrogen oxides were measured
at 79 automatic monitoring sites in Scotland. Of these sites, 70
had a capture rate of at least 75% - data for these sites can be
found on the
Scottish Air
Quality Database.
59 These sites were not included in the chart as they are
both ‘Kerbside’ sites.
60 National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (2016).
Air
Quality Pollutant Inventories for England, Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland: 1990 - 2014.
Ground Level Ozone
61 All values displayed in the chart are at or above the 50%
data capture rate. If the data capture rate for any site is below
50% then the data will not be included in the chart. Where this
occurs, information will be provided as appropriate in further
footnotes. When assessing whether sites met the Air Quality
Strategy objectives, only those sites with a data capture rate of
at least 75% are included.
62 This chart contains an illustrative sample of automatic
monitoring sites which have been selected based on their
geographical location, how long they were in operation, site type
(generally ‘kerbside sites’ are not included) and
whether there were consistently high data capture rates. This is
mainly to allow the data to be presented clearly, as there are too
many monitoring sites to clearly present in one chart. The overall
trends are discussed in the ‘Trend’ section.
63 In 2015, ozone concentrations were measured at 11 sites,
which all had a data capture rate of over 75%. Data for these sites
are available on the
Scottish Air
Quality Database.
Sensitive Habitats Exceeding Critical Loads for
Acidification and Eutrophication
64 3-year average deposition is used to reduce substantial
year to year variability. Deposition data for 1995-97 to 1999-01
are based on the same methodology. Changes have subsequently been
made to the methods for estimating deposition: (i) nitric acid
deposition has been included in data from 2001-03 onwards; (ii)
aerosol deposition of NH4, NO3, SO4 has been included in data from
2002-04 onwards. Therefore deposition for earlier years may be
underestimated and so the actual reductions may be larger than
shown here.
65 Deposition data sets for 2004 to 2013 have been updated
following research by NERC, CEH and Defra (report under review),
which assessed the current DELTA sampler configuration’s
specificity for HNO3 measurement and showed additional sampling of
other atmospheric oxidised nitrogen species. A correction factor
has been obtained and applied to the HNO3 concentrations used in
the CBED mapping and the trends in critical loads exceedances for
the period 2004-06 to 2011-2013 have been updated accordingly.
66 Hall, J., Curtis, C., Dore, T., Smith, R. 2015.
Methods
for the calculation of critical loads and their exceedances in the
UK. Report to Defra under contract AQ0826. Centre for Ecology
and Hydrology.
67 Hall, J., Smith, R. 2015.
Trends
in critical load exceedances in the UK. Report to Defra under
contract AQ0826. Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
Water
68 Eutrophication is the accelerated growth of plants in
water bodies caused by excess nutrients. This accelerated growth
and subsequent decay of plant organisms depletes oxygen levels,
which can have harmful effects upon fish and other aquatic life
which require oxygen to survive.
69 Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland (2001).
The
Water Supply (Water Quality) (Scotland) Regulations 2001.
Public Water Supplies
70 Figures for the raw water abstracted are collected over
the calendar year, as it is part of the corporate data submitted to
SEPA, whereas treated water produced data is collected over the
business reporting year (April to March). Therefore, to present
both sets of data on the same chart, the raw water abstracted
figures shown reflect the first part of the business reporting
year. For example, this means that the figure for 2015/16 reflects
the raw water abstracted in 2015.
71 Since 2010, raw water abstracted has been based on
metered data. Prior to 2010, it was estimated based on a calculated
methodology. Slight corrections were made to the 2007 and 2008
figures in 2010.
72 Operational use includes standpipe volumes, fire service
use, hydrant misuse, void property use, as well as use by Scottish
Water in Offices, waste water treatment works, the distribution
network and sewer jetting.
73 Total Top Down Leakage is the summation of Scottish Water
distribution network losses and customer supply side leakage, as
calculated using ISO9001 Water Balance methodologies. This method
is different than the one used to calculate the leakage figure
included in the annual
Water
Industry Output Monitoring Group report and as such, the
figures differ slightly each year.
74 The Economic Level of Leakage (
ELL) (where
the cost of repair is greater than the value of water leaking from
the system) was attained in 2012/13, and leakage has continued to
be managed at this level since.
Drinking Water Quality
75 Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland (2001).
The
Water Supply (Water Quality) (Scotland) Regulations 2001.
76 Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland.
DWQR
Annual Report
River Water Quality
77 The indicator is based on a set of five water quality
parameters which are sensitive to organic pollution, nutrients and
toxic substances and provide a measure of species diversity. Each
of the parameters is assessed over a rolling 3 year period and the
results weighted by river length. The assessment is against the
standards provided for each parameter in the Water Framework
Directive classification. Two of the Water Framework Directive
standards, invertebrates and phosphorus, used to calculate the
indicator were changed in 2013;
SEPA is
looking into back calculating the indicator values potentially as
far back as 2007 using the new standards to provide a consistent
time series.
Nitrates
78 Data are expressed as mg N/l. To convert to mg NO3/l
(nitrate), multiply by 62/14.
79 This applies to most European rivers though for some
rivers up to 1 mg N/l is
reported. See European Environment Agency report
'Nutrients
in Fresh Water'. for more information.
80 In Aberdeen, Moray, Banff and Buchan; Strathmore and
Fife; Lothians and Borders; Lower Nithsdale and Stranraer Lowlands.
81 Under
The
Designation of Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (Scotland) Regulations
2002 and The Designation of Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (Scotland)
Regulations 2015 and
EC
Nitrates Directive (91/676/EEC) Annex 1A(3).
Orthophosphates
82 Soluble reactive phosphorus was measured as μg P/l. To
convert to μg PO4/l (orthophosphate), multiply by 95/31.
Compliance with the EC Bathing Water Directive
83 The number of bathing waters identified in Scotland has
not remained constant in the period 2000-2016. There were 60
identified bathing waters in 2000, two of which were inland bathing
waters, rising to 84 in 2013. Three of the 84 designated bathing
waters are inland waters, which have all complied with the bathing
water standards since designation.
Radiation
84
Radon
in Dwellings in Scotland: 2008 Review and Atlas
85 SEPA.
Radioactivity
in Food and the Environment (RIFE) reports.
Sources of radioactivity
86 Radon and gamma values are specific to Scotland. Other
values are assumed to be the same as the UK average as published in
the Health Protection Agency - Radiation Protection
Division’s publication: HPA-RPD-001 - Ionising Radiation
Exposure of the
UK Population: 2005
Review.
87 Because of rounding, percentages do not add up to 100.
Radioactivity in milk
88 From 1996 onwards, the concentrations reported were lower
than the limit for detection. Note that figures pre-1996 were
produced by the HPA who took milk samples from a number of milk
depots throughout the country, in proportion to the quantity of
milk handled by each depot in order to generate the data. Post-1996
the figures were produced by
SEPA who
collected samples and analysed them for sites remote from nuclear
sites. As a result, the 1996-2014 figures are not strictly
comparable with previous years, although they still represent
average concentrations in milk in Scotland.
89 Unlike 137Cs, which was widely dispersed in the
environment, 90Sr was mostly deposited near Chernobyl.
Waste and Recycling
90
European
Waste hierarchy
91 Scottish Government.
Making
things last - A circular economy strategy for Scotland.
92 Scotland Performs.
National
Indicator: Reduce waste generated.
93
SEPA
waste data technical report
Household Waste
94 In 2011 the meaning of household waste changed to mean
“waste from households” only. Waste which had
previously been reported in WasteDataFlow as household waste
includes street sweeping, litter bins, parks and gardens waste, and
beach cleaning waste. From 2011, combustion of household waste
outputs which previously counted as recycled are now included in
the Other Diversion category. This includes incinerator
bottom ash and metal outputs from incineration. Household
waste used to produce compost like outputs from mechanical
biological treatment plants also no longer contribute to recycling.
95
Scotland's
Environment Website - interactive household waste data
Land
96
Scotland’s
Environment Website - Land.
97
Scotland's
Environment Website - Land - Woodlands and Forests.
98 © Crown copyright and database right 2014. Ordnance
Survey Licence number 100021242.
99
Scotland
Performs Greener Objective.
100
Scottish
Government. Land Use Strategy.
101
Forestry
Statistics 2016.
102 Scotland Performs.
National
Indicator: Increase people's use of Scotland's outdoors.
103 Scotland Performs.
National
Indicator: Improve the condition of protected nature sites.
104 Scottish Government.
Land
Use Strategy indicators.
Derelict and Urban Vacant Land
105 During 2015, historical data for the years 2009 - 2014
were revised to remove sites that had been taken out of the survey
for definitional reasons and to correct any other previous errors
highlighted in the 2015 survey returns.
106 Vacant land must either have had prior development on
it, or had preparatory work taken place on it in anticipation of
future development to be classed as ‘vacant land’.
Derelict land must currently not be used for the purpose for which
it is held or a use acceptable in the local plan to be classed as
‘derelict land’. Land also qualifies as derelict if it
has an un-remedied previous use which could constrain future
development.
Agricultural Land Use
107 Changes in trend may reflect changes to the coverage of
agricultural holdings included in the June Census register, as well
as genuine changes in the area of total agricultural land.
108 Scotland’s Environment Website -
Land.
109 From 2009, data on land use was obtained from the Single
Application Form (
SAF). This data
has been combined with the land use data from all other holdings,
collected through the June Agricultural Census Forms, to generate
overall June Agricultural Census results. This development has led
to a substantial reduction in statistical data collection and an
overall improvement in the quality of land use statistics. The use
of
SAF data has
resulted in a step change in some of the land use results from
2009, especially for rough grazing and grass. This means that the
trends across 2008 and 2009 for these land use categories represent
differences in the way this data has been reported between the 2008
June Agricultural Census and 2009 SAF rather than genuine changes
and so should be treated with caution.
110 In 2015 and 2016, changes to the SAF meant that land use
data was not available for about 500,000 ha of rough grazing,
woodland, and other land. These were estimated based on previous
years. In 2016 this affected 1% of rough grazing, 75% of woodland
and 86% of other land. This is in addition to the usual estimation
for non-SAF respondents not returning a census.
111 Only includes woodland on agricultural holdings.
Nutrients Applied to Crops and Grass
112 Total quantity of nutrient used (kg) divided by the
total extent of crop area (ha) (including any areas without
application of the nutrient). These overall application rates
provide a means of estimating the tonnage of nutrients from
manufactured fertiliser used during the year.
113 Manufactured fertilisers only - excludes organic
fertilisers such as manure and slurry or sewage sludge.
Area of Woodland
114 Woodland is defined as land under stands of trees with a
canopy cover of at least 20%, or having the potential to achieve
this, including integral open space, wooded agricultural land, and
felled areas that are awaiting restocking.
115 Restocking is the replanting of existing areas of
woodland that have been felled. This includes felled areas that
have been restocked by natural regeneration.
Conservation
116 Marine Scotland.
National
Marine Plan Interactive.
Designated Areas
117 Figures as at 31 March each year.
118 Area figures are rounded to the nearest thousand
hectares and percentages to the nearest whole number. Area figures
exclude the area in England of cross-border sites. Figures for
SACs and
SPAs include
both terrestrial and marine areas. Figures for
SSSIs include
intertidal habitats.
119 Many protected areas may be covered by more than one
conservation designation. In particular,
SSSIs overlap
to a considerable extent with other designations. About 65% of
terrestrial/inshore
SACs, 52%
of
SPAs, and 86% of
Ramsar Sites by area are also designated as
SSSIs.
120 In Scotland,
SSSIs are
designated by Scottish Natural Heritage under the Nature
Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004. Some
SSSIs overlap
and where this occurs the area of overlapping land will be counted
more than once. In 2016 this accounted for 2,708 hectares, so the
net area of
SSSI
sites at 31 March 2016 is approximately 1,019,648 hectares.
121 Special Areas of Conservation (
SACs) are
designated under the 1992 EU Habitats Directive to protect certain
species and habitat types throughout the
EU. Some
SACs
overlap, and where this occurs the area of overlapping land will be
counted more than once. In 2016 this accounted for around 5,500
hectares, so the net area of
SAC sites
at 31 March 2016 is approximately 981,100 hectares. Figures include
both designated SACs and candidate
SACs
submitted to the
EC. Figures included
in the Offshore Marine category include 2 candidate
SACs that
straddle the 12 nm inshore/offshore marine boundary.
122 Special Protection Areas (
SPAs) are
classified under the 1979
EU Wild Birds Directive
(which was codified in 2009) to safeguard the habitat of certain
wild bird species. Some SPAs overlap, and where this occurs the
area of overlapping land will be counted more than once. In 2016
this accounted for around 58,500 hectares, so the net area of SPA
sites at 31 March 2016 is approximately 1,237,700 hectares.
123 Ramsar sites are designated under the 1971 Convention on
Wetlands of International Importance (commonly known as the Ramsar
Convention).
Scheduled Monuments
124 Figures as at 31 March each year.
125
UK Parliament
(1979). Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.
126 Further information about SMs, including maps, is
available on the Historic Environment Scotland portal:
http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/spatialdownloads.
127 The designations team within Historic Environment
Scotland compiles and maintains the ‘Schedule’ of
monuments of national importance.
128 The review of dual designated sites is a nationwide
project to review structures which are both listed as buildings of
special architectural or historic interest and scheduled as
monuments of national importance. Where appropriate the ‘dual
designation’ of structures is being removed and they are
being either listed or scheduled depending on their individual
circumstances. Removing dual designations will help to provide
clarity for the future management of sites. Overall it will see a
reduction in the number of designations, but not a reduction in the
number of sites that are designated.
Percentage of natural features on protected sites in
favourable condition
129 Scottish Natural Heritage's Site Condition Monitoring (
SCM) programme
is a six-year rolling programme of monitoring which aims to assess
the condition of, and management/wider environmental influences on,
a sample of designated natural features each year. Sites classed as
being in favourable condition include sites assessed as being in
favourable condition through
SCM, sites
assessed as being in unfavourable condition but showing signs of
recovery and sites assessed as being unfavourable but benefitting
from a change in management measures which, given an appropriate
time, will ensure the feature reaches favourable condition.
130 Scottish Natural Heritage.
Site
Condition Monitoring (SCM) programme. SCM data is also
available via
Scotland’s
Environment Web.
131 Scotland Performs.
National
Indicator: Improve the condition of protected nature sites.
Biodiversity
132 Scottish Natural Heritage.
Valuing
our environment.
133
The
Scottish Biodiversity Strategy
134 See status of wild bird populations.
BAP
Habitats
135 In 2007/08 an updated UK BAP priority list was published
containing 1150 species and 65 habitats across the
UK, of which 606 species
and 60 habitats are in Scotland.
BAP
Species
136 Department of the Environment (1994).
Biodiversity:
the
UK Action Plan.
HMSO
Status of wild bird populations
137 The population of wintering water birds is measured in
the winter beginning in the year indicated, i.e. 2013 indicates
populations measured from approximately November 2013 - March 2014.
Data displayed for wintering water birds is smoothed.
138
BTO Breeding
Bird Survey.
139
JNCC Seabird
Monitoring Programme.
140
Wetland Birds
Survey.
Status of selected fish stocks
141 The data for the fish stocks are the current best
estimates of each stock and not the historic estimates. The full
time series is revised for each stock every time an assessment is
re-run and although values at the most recent end of the time
series may change markedly in some cases, most other values remain
stable.
142 Figures for herring are for North Sea stocks, figures
for haddock include North Sea, Skagerrak and West of Scotland,
figures for cod include North Sea, Skagerrak and the eastern
English channel and figures for saithe include North Sea &
Skagerrak, West Coast of Scotland and Rockall.
143 The spawning stock biomass (SSB) is the total weight of
mature fish (capable of spawning) in a particular stock.
144 The precautionary biological limit (Bpa) indicates the
SSB below which the stock is considered to be at risk of suffering
reduced reproductive capacity, indicating that spawning levels may
be insufficient to guarantee stock replenishment and that stock
abundance will probably decrease. The Bpa for each stock is defined
by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (
ICES).
145 Figures for haddock have still to be approved by
ICES
and so are provisional until November 2016.
146 The Bpa for saithe was revised downwards from 200 kt to
150 kt this year, while the Bpa for haddock has been revised
upwards from 88 kt to 132 kt.
Catches of Wild Salmon
147 Includes grilse (salmon which have matured, or are about
to mature, after one winter at sea).
148 Fixed engine fisheries operate in coastal areas. Net
& coble fisheries are generally restricted to estuaries and the
lower reaches of rivers. Rod & line fisheries cover
recreational angling within river systems.
149 Since 1994, numbers of fish reported as caught and
released by anglers have been reported separately. Prior to this,
only numbers caught and retained are available. No figures for
fishing effort for rod & line catches are available.
150 Further information on Scottish salmon and sea trout
stocks can be found in the
Marine
Scotland Science Report 01/15: Status of Scottish salmon and sea
trout stocks 2014 report.
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