The primary aim of the project was to complete woodland community descriptions of all Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSls) in Wales that have semi-natural woodland as a qualifying feature. There was also a need for some survey of woodland on SSSls where woodland is not the outright qualifying feature and some areas of non-SSSI woodland (primarily pSSSI and areas of woodland adjacent to existing SSSls). Sites and areas of woodland to be included in the survey were selected by the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW). National Vegetation Classification (NVC) field survey methodology followed procedures.
This dataset contains detailed Phase 2 survey data from over 800 woodlands of conservation interest in Wales, predominantly SSSI and pSSSI woodlands.
The purpose of this data capture was to improve the overall knowledge of Welsh woodland communities, to provide consistent community descriptions across the woodland SSSI series as fundamental site-support information and to assess SSSI status of new sites. Phase 2 woodland surveys have been carried out periodically since the late 1980s but a concentrated period of survey on SSSI and pSSSI woodland occurred from 1995 and 2000. Data was collected by trained personnel, digitised by contractors, validated by CCW Knowledge Management Group, corrections made by contractors, validated again by CCW Knowledge Management Group, corrections made in-house in conjunction with Woodland Ecologist.
Only a redacted version of this data is available under the Open Government Licence and available for public use, see Limitations on Public Access and Use Constraints.
