ASSIs and SSSIs

Overview

What an Area of Special Scientific Interest is and how it relates to the designation used in Great Britain, who declares one, what it protects and what it actually restricts.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What does ASSI stand for, and what is it?

   Model answer

   Area of Special Scientific Interest. It is the statutory conservation designation used in Northern Ireland for the best examples of the region's flora, fauna, geological and physiographical features. It protects small, precisely bounded sites of scientific importance rather than wide landscapes, and it is the direct Northern Ireland equivalent of the Site of Special Scientific Interest used elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

2. 2

   What does SSSI stand for, and how does it relate to an ASSI?

   Model answer

   Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is the equivalent statutory designation used in England, Scotland and Wales, protecting the same kinds of feature for the same reasons and working in essentially the same way. Northern Ireland uses the term ASSI instead because its designation is made under separate Northern Ireland legislation. In practice a student can treat them as the same tool under two names, with ASSI being the correct term for Northern Ireland.

3. 3

   Who declares an ASSI in Northern Ireland?

   Model answer

   The Northern Ireland Environment Agency, on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, using powers under Northern Ireland environment legislation. It is a central government designation made by the environment department, not a decision of the local district council, although the council must take the designation into account when it determines planning applications affecting the site.

4. 4

   Who designates SSSIs in the rest of the United Kingdom?

   Model answer

   The relevant statutory nature conservation body for each country: Natural England in England, NatureScot in Scotland and Natural Resources Wales in Wales, using powers under wildlife and countryside legislation. As with an ASSI, the designation is made by a national conservation body rather than by the local planning authority.

5. 5

   What kinds of feature does an ASSI protect?

   Model answer

   Habitats and plant communities such as raised bog, blanket bog, fen, species-rich grassland, sand dune, saltmarsh, native woodland and lake; populations of rare or important animals, including breeding and wintering birds, invertebrates and fish; rare plant species; geological exposures such as rock faces, quarries and cliffs that show important rock sequences or fossils; and physiographical or landform features such as karst, drumlin fields and glacial landforms.

6. 6

   What does ASSI status actually restrict?

   Model answer

   Every owner and occupier is given a list of operations that would be likely to damage the protected features, and they must obtain written consent from the environment department before carrying any of them out. Typical listed operations include ploughing, reseeding, applying fertiliser, lime or pesticide, draining, infilling, burning, cutting or removing vegetation, extracting minerals, altering water levels, changing grazing regimes, building or laying tracks, and dumping. Carrying out a listed operation without consent, or otherwise damaging the site, is an offence and can attract a fine and a requirement to restore the site.

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