This resource contains boundary, site and feature information for Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) with marine components in UK waters.
Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) with "marine components" protect habitat and/or species associated with the marine environment. More information on SACs with marine components can be found on our SACs with marine components page. SACs with marine components are a subset of the UK's full suite of SACs – data for all UK SACs can be download from our website.
JNCC collates information on SACs with marine components on behalf of the Country Nature Conservation Bodies (CNCBs) to create a dataset of inshore and offshore sites across the UK. Please note, the CNCBs periodically update SAC boundaries (e.g. when natural features of the coastline shift position) and these subtle changes may not be captured in JNCC’s datasets. For the latest inshore SAC boundaries, please visit the relevant CNCB website.
A shapefile and spreadsheet are available for download. The shapefile contains site boundaries and associated site attribute information, including: site code, site name, site status, country and CP2 region. The spreadsheet provides the same site attribute data as well as information on the sites' protected features.
For further information please see the shapefile metadata and spreadsheet read-me (within the files).
