Is the Natura 2000 network of the European Union the key land use policy tool for preserving Europe's biodiversity heritage?

The Natura 2000 network of protected areas is considered by the European Commission to be the centrepiece of the European Union's nature and biodiversity policy. This paper reviews the European Environment Agency's public Natura 2000 database. It comprises data for birds, mammals, fish, amphibians, reptiles, invertebrates and plants submitted by the 28 EU Member States. For each Natura 2000 site a calculation was made of the conservation value of each species, together with an assessment of population isolation in relation to natural range and global conservation value. The results show that the great majority of national species populations of Community interest and birds are just covered by each Natura 2000 site up to only 2% at maximum. The most frequently reported high negative impacts on Natura 2000 sites are human induced changes in hydraulic conditions, hunting and collection of wild animals, and grazing. Natura 2000 sites alone are unlikely to safeguard Europe's biodiversity heritage, because most species occur predominantly outside Natura 2000 protected areas. Recommendations are made for improved reporting by EU Member States to provide quantifiable data based on monitoring and comparable indicators. Reform of the Natura 2000 network is needed for an integrated ecosystem approach to allow natural and human induced fluctuations of structures and functions of species habitats. 100% landscape management of the wider countryside should be enforced as a result of the limited coverage of Natura 2000 sites for Europe's biodiversity heritage.