untitled

The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do
not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN, UNEP-WCMC or
other participating organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area,
or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

UNEP-WCMC or its collaborators have obtained the Data Set from documented sources

believed to be reliable and have made all reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy of the Data
Set. UNEP-WCMC does not warrant the accuracy or reliability of the Data Set and excludes
all conditions, warranties, undertakings and terms express or implied whether by statute,
common law, trade usage, course of dealings or otherwise (including but not limited to the
fitness of the Data Set for its intended use) to the fullest extent permitted by law.

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN or UNEP-

WCMC.

Published by:

IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK and UNEP World
Conservation Monitoring Centre, Cambridge, UK

©2003 International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural
Resources
©2003 UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre
Reproduction of this publication, or excerpts from it, for educational or other
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from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged.
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Citation:

Chape, S., S. Blyth, L. Fish, P. Fox and M. Spalding (compilers) (2003).

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and

Cambridge, UK and UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK. ix + 44pp.

ISBN:

2-8317-0746-3
92-807-2362-6

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Contents

Foreword

vii

Acknowledgements

1. Introduction

Format and content of the

2003 UN List of Protected Areas

History of the United Nations List process

Reinforcing the importance of the UN List process

2. The World Database on Protected Areas

3. Compilation of the

2003 UN List of Protected Areas

Derivation of 2003 data

Criteria for inclusion

Aspects of data presentation

Application of the IUCN Protected Area Management Categories

4. Layout of the

2003 UN List

Country summaries

National sites

International sites

5. Information gaps and limitations and explanatory notes

6. Analysis of global protected area trends

Number and extent of the world’s protected areas

Growth of the world’s protected areas

Coastal and marine protected areas

Extent and protection of the world’s terrestrial biomes

Analysis by regions

Note on the WCPA Antarctic region

7. Updating the World Database on Protected Areas

Annex. Protected Area Number and Extent by IUCN WCPA Region

Tables

Table 1. Global number and extent of protected areas

Table 2. Indicative ranking of 1997 and 2003 proportional percentage values

by IUCN Category (excluding non-categorised sites)

Table 3. Protected areas in World Parks Congress years

Foreword

The United Nations Environment Programme and IUCN – The World Conservation Union are
pleased to present the

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

. This is the thirteenth report

to be produced since 1962 that records the global community’s endeavour to conserve the
Earth’s natural places. The growth in area and extent of the conservation estate in the 20

century, especially in the last quarter of the century, reflects an increasing political com-
mitment to conserving the Earth’s remaining biological diversity. The growth in the global
protected areas network, with diverse management objectives, also reflects the high social and
cultural values that societies place on them. The

2003 UN List

is an essential reference

document for all who want to understand the progress made in responding to the challenges of
biodiversity loss and other environmental threats around the world.

As we enter the new millennium there is compelling statistical evidence presented in the

2003 UN List

that concrete action has been taken by governments, organisations and in-

dividuals to set aside not only discrete areas for protection but also protected area systems and
networks. These are essential if we are to implement the ecosystem approach to the way we
manage the planet’s resources. Of course, statistics are only part of the story. Protected areas in
most countries urgently need technical and financial resources to ensure that they are ef-
fectively managed to achieve their objectives.

The

2003 UN List

is the first version to attempt a comprehensive presentation of all the

world’s known protected areas. The global conservation estate has grown enormously since
the first UN List was published in 1962 with just over 1,000 protected areas. This edition lists
102,102 sites covering 18.8 million km

. Significant progress has been made in conserving

representative areas of the world’s terrestrial biomes, although some biomes, including Lake
Systems and Temperate Grasslands, remain poorly represented. Of the total area protected it is
estimated that 17.1 million km

constitute terrestrial protected areas, or 11.5% of the global

land surface. Unfortunately, marine areas are significantly under-represented in the global
protected area system. Approximately 1.64 million km

comprise marine protected areas – an

estimated 0.5% of the world’s oceans and less than one-tenth of the overall extent of protected
areas worldwide.

An important aspect of the UN List process is that it is produced through a partnership

between IUCN, the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), UNEP and the
UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre. The UN, IUCN and the Commission have
been working in partnership for the past 44 years. It is also pleasing to see the valuable
contributory role of more recent partners in the UN List process, including the European
Environment Agency, the ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation, and the
numerous organisations comprising the World Database on Protected Areas Consortium.

The work of WCPA in developing and refining international protected area definitions and

management objectives has been central to the development of the UN List. This is the second
edition to use the six IUCN management categories adopted in 1994. It provides an excellent
internationally understood framework within which countries can structure their protected
area systems. Already, there is considerable diversity evident in the application of the system
throughout the world, reflected in the regional analyses presented in this edition. For example,
the growing application of Category VI (Managed Resource Protected Areas), in many
countries suggests an increasingly close link between protection and sustainable use.

vii

Acknowledgements

The generous assistance provided by national and international agencies to the

2003 United

Nations List of Protected Areas

process is gratefully acknowledged. Many professionals from

protected areas management agencies around the world and other experts have provided the
information used in updating the World Database on Protected Areas, which underpins the

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

. Without their invaluable input, this edition of the

UN List could not have been completed.

The support of Kenton Miller, Chair of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas,

and Commission Vice Chairs and members has once again been an essential component of the
UN List process. Similarly, the support and guidance of David Sheppard, Pedro Rosabal and
Peter Shadie have contributed substantially to the success of the process.

The European Environment Agency and the European Topic Centre on Nature Protection &

Biodiversity (ETC/NPB) undertook the survey of European countries, with the generous
assistance of Marc Roekaerts, Lauri Klein and Ulla Pinborg. The ASEAN Regional Centre for
Biodiversity Conservation provided updated information for the ASEAN countries of
Southeast Asia, with the generous support of John MacKinnon and Lewie Dekker.

The cooperation of UNESCO for information on World Heritage and Biosphere Reserve

sites, and the Ramsar Convention Bureau for information on Wetlands of International
Significance is gratefully acknowledged.

Valuable input was also provided by members of the World Database on Protected Areas

(WDPA) Consortium as part of the WDPA updating process. In particular: Roger Sayre and
Leo Sotomayor – The Nature Conservancy; Silvio Olivieri and Mohammad Bakarr –
Conservation International; Neil Burgess, Holly Strand and Jan Schipper – WWF US; Kenton
Miller and Robin White – World Resources Institute; Chris Magin – Fauna & Flora
International; Eric Sanderson and Madhu Rao – Wildlife Conservation Society; Martin Sneary
and Mark Balman – BirdLife International.

A number of other people made significant inputs to the compilation and production of the

UN List, including advice, inputting and cross-checking entries in the database, and re-
searching data sources. Their assistance is greatly appreciated, in particular:

John Ady, Sofi Charlwood, Jerry Harrison, Jargal Jamsranjav, Florence Jean, Igor Lysenko,

Melanie Mason, Corinna Ravilious, Michelle Taylor, Karen Timmins and Gillian Warltier at
UNEP- WCMC; and Carola Borja at Conservation International.

Finally, the data collection, analysis and production of the

2003 United Nations List of

Protected Areas

would not be possible without the generous financial support of: UNEP,

IUCN – The World Conservation Union, UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs, The World Bank, European Environment Agency/European Topic Centre on Nature
Protection & Biodiversity (ETC/NPB), International Council for Mining and Metals, BP plc
and BHP-Billiton.

1. Introduction

The

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

presents data on 102,102 protected areas

covering 18.8 million km

. Within this total figure, there are 68,066 protected areas with IUCN

Management Categories. In addition, there are 4,633 internationally designated sites.
Although there has been an increase in the range of data presented in the

2003 UN List

compared to previous editions, it is clear that there has been a substantial increase in the extent
of the world’s terrestrial conservation estate in the past seven years. However, marine areas
still make up a very small component – 1.64 million km

or 8.7% of the total area protected.

This is the thirteenth edition in a series that was initiated by the United Nations more than 40

years ago. The last edition published data collected in 1997. Of the previous 12 UN Lists
published, five (1982–1997) have been prepared jointly by UNEP-WCMC and IUCN. As well
as changes in the format and content of the

2003 UN List

, the process involved to gather and

review the data reflected the widening of partnership arrangements instituted in 2002 to
manage the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) that underpins the UN List. This
partnership includes other organisations through the WDPA Consortium, as well as agree-
ments with intergovernmental organisations, such as the European Environment Agency and
the ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation. This is also the first UN List
prepared since the World Conservation Monitoring Centre became part of UNEP.

Format and content of the

2003 UN List of Protected Areas

The format and content of the

2003 UN List

is a significant departure from the previous

editions that have been produced. As discussed below, production of the UN List has been an
evolving process since its inception in 1962, moving from the iconic national park “role of
honour” concept that characterised the earlier UN Lists to one that reflects the range of
protected area objectives and values relevant to the late 20

and early 21

century. Although

criteria and definitions for inclusion have changed, both the

1997

and

2003 UN Lists

use the

IUCN Protected Areas Category System as the basis for analysis. Globally the numbers of
protected areas have increased substantially, and their conservation values and role in the
provision of ecosystem services and sustainable development have broadened considerably.
The recent (relative to the time period of the

UN List

) emphasis on ecosystem approaches,

ecological corridors and the function of protected areas as “core” sites within wider landscape
conservation frameworks calls for a more inclusive approach to presenting protected areas in
the UN List.

The

1997 UN List

recorded 12,754 sites with IUCN categories published as a report with

more than 400 pages. Clearly, to provide comprehensive information in the

2003 UN List

the 68,066 protected areas with IUCN categories alone would require a hard copy publication
of 4–5 volumes. A decision has therefore been made to present the data on CD-ROM, included
with this report. The use of this format has also provided an opportunity to provide information
not previously distributed with the UN List.

In all previous editions of the UN List, criteria for inclusion have focused on specific

definitions of protected areas, a minimum size and, since the 1982 edition, the UN List has
only included those sites with IUCN management categories. With respect to these criteria, it
has been decided in this edition to include

all

protected areas that meet the IUCN definition of

a protected area, regardless of size and whether or not they have been assigned an IUCN
category.

IUCN defines a protected area as:

An area of land and/or sea especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance
of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and
managed through legal or other effective means.

This decision is based on:

Not all protected area agencies or other organisations have assigned IUCN categories to
their sites. However, the 34,036 protected areas without IUCN categories cover 3.6
million km

and therefore represent a significant proportion of the global conservation

estate. Their omission would significantly under-represent the efforts that have been
made by many countries to establish protected areas. It should be noted, however, that
their inclusion in no way diminishes the importance placed by IUCN, UNEP, IUCN’s
World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and UNEP-WCMC upon the assign-
ment of management categories as a mechanism for the rational international assess-
ment of protected areas. On the contrary, inclusion of the non-categorised sites clearly
shows the progress that has been made in assigning categories to most of the world’s
protected areas (67% of the total number and 81% of the area). The value of the category
system reinforces the need to achieve the goal of progressively assigning all relevant
sites to an IUCN category.

The previous size limitation of a minimum of 10km

(1,000 hectares), or 1km

(100

hectares) in the case of islands, has not been applied. The rationale for this is not only the
opportunity provided by the digital format, but also because even small areas can play a
significant role in conservation – especially in the context of bioregional planning
approaches. The IUCN protected area definition does not include a size restriction.

History of the United Nations List process

The first

United Nations List of National Parks and Equivalent Reserves

was produced at the

request of the United Nations following a resolution adopted by the General Assembly at its
16

Session in December 1962 on ‘Economic Development and Nature Conservation’. This

resolution endorsed an earlier resolution (No. 713) of the 27th Session of the UN Economic
and Social Council (ECOSOC) held in 1959, which recognised ‘National Parks and
Equivalent Reserves’ as an important factor in the wise use of natural resources, and led to the
compilation of the

World List of National Parks and Equivalent Reserves

The ECOSOC resolution reads as follows:

“The Economic and Social Council,

Noting that national parks and equivalent reserves have been established in most
countries which are Members of the United Nations or the specialized agencies,
and that they contribute to the inspiration, culture and welfare of mankind,

Believing that these national parks are valuable for economic and scientific
reasons and also as areas for the future preservation of fauna and flora and
geologic structures in their natural state,

(1)

Requests

the Secretary-General to establish, in co-operation with UNESCO, FAO,

and other interested specialized agencies, a list of national parks and equivalent
reserves, with a brief description of each, for consideration by the Council at its

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

twenty-ninth session, together with his recommendations for maintaining and
developing the list on a current basis and for its distribution;

(2)

Invites

State Members of the United Nations and of the specialized agencies to

transmit to the Secretary General a description of the areas they desire to have
internationally registered as national parks or equivalent reserves; and

(3)

Furthermore invites

the International Union for Conservation of Nature and

Natural Resources and other interested non-governmental organisations in con-
sultative status to assist the Secretary-General, upon his request, in the preparation
of the proposed list.”

In his introductory statement to the first edition of the UN List, the UN Secretary-General

noted the “widespread interest in the fact that the United Nations is issuing the List” and that “a
number of Governments have indicated that new legislative measures are now under
consideration for the establishment and protection of national parks and equivalent reserves”.
This early UN recognition, supported by IUCN and the International Commission on National
Parks (now WCPA), provided an important impetus for the growing global momentum to
establish protected areas. The number of listed protected areas has subsequently increased
from just over 1,000 sites reported in the

1962 UN List

to over 12,754 sites listed in 1997, and

102,102 in the

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Global recognition of the importance of protected areas and their linkage to broader

environment and development issues has increased significantly during the past three decades.
This recognition has been reflected in the 1972 Stockholm Conference on the Human
Environment, the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development, the adoption and
implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and other international and
regional environmental agreements. The United Nations Environment Programme, which was
established in 1972 as a direct outcome of the Stockholm Conference, administers the CBD,
which now has 187 Contracting Parties. The implementation of the CBD, in particular Article
8 (

In-situ

Conservation), and the inclusion of protected areas as an indicator for the

Millennium Development Goals and the WSSD Plan of Implementation (2010 Targets) has
further highlighted the relevance of protected areas to global conservation and sustainable de-
velopment agendas.

Reinforcing the importance of the UN List process

The role of national governments through the UN system has provided the framework for
concerted and collaborative action on global environmental issues. With respect to protected
areas, this has involved a partnership with IUCN, WCPA and non-government organisations
that has spanned more than 40 years. During this time the extent and importance of protected
areas has increased, the global stakeholder base in conservation has widened considerably, the
United Nations Environment Programme has been established, and the role of the World
Database on Protected Areas endorsed by a number of international organisations.

As key mechanisms in the global collaborative process, the importance of the WDPA and

the UN List have been reinforced by Decision 22/1/III of the UNEP Governing Council in
February 2003 to update and renew the 1959 ECOSOC resolution. Specifically, the Council:

“[Agreed]

that the United Nations Economic and Social Council resolution of

1959, subsequently endorsed by the General Assembly in 1962, needs to be
renewed and updated.

”

and

1. Introduction

2. The World Database on Protected

Areas

The WDPA is the largest repository of global information on protected areas. It has undergone
re-development throughout the 1980s and 1990s, reflecting changing systems, technologies
and needs. Originally implemented as a flat-file database only holding current protected areas
information (that is, with no historical content in the database), protected areas data has been
significantly extended

over the years. Currently the information is held as two components:

current spatial extent and historic aspatial details. The aspatial component is a relational
database designed to support changing requirements and to facilitate more detailed analyses of
the information. It is also used in conjunction with the spatial data in many GIS analyses. An
important advance has been the on-line access provided in recent years via the Internet, access
not only to the analyses and compilations of the data but also to the underpinning data. The
implementation of the Internet interface allows ready access to the information at all times.
Users of the UN List are strongly encouraged to verify the current status of the information in
this report by using the Internet

, and notifying UNEP-WCMC of any errors or omissions

through the email address provided.

Future adaptations are already planned and will initially focus on enabling and encouraging

distributed updating of the information by experts with local knowledge.

In addition to production of the periodic UN List, the data in the WDPA has been used, and

continues to be used, to support a number of global and regional assessments, including:

Circumpolar Protected Areas Network (CPAN) – Strategy and Action Plan (1996)

Biodiversity Conservation in the Tropics: Gaps in Habitat Protection and Funding
Piorities (1997)

WWF Forest for Life Campaign and Living Waters Campaign (1996/1998)

European Forests and Protected Areas: Gap Analysis (2000)

FAO Global Forest Resource Assessment (2000)

Prioritisation of Target Areas For Forest Restoration (Report to WWF, 2000)

Mountain Watch Study (2002)

Protected areas information support for the V

World Parks Congress (2003)

Global Environment Outlook (ongoing)

Global Biodiversity Outlook (ongoing)

World Resources Report (ongoing)

Protected area and thematic studies for the World Heritage Convention (ongoing)

The information that supported this extension was held in records, but not initially included in the
database.

Website: http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/wdbpa/unlist

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment

Millennium Development Goals

As well as providing input to these assessments the databases held by UNEP-WCMC are

frequently used in international oil spill emergency response action and contingency planning.
The protected areas database is a key component in the early stages of emergency response,
providing GIS- supported location maps of impacted areas. By incorporating this information
at the outset the responders are able quickly to identify areas of sensitivity that may require
specific protection. The information gathered during a response event is also fed back into the
database to improve the effectiveness of future responses.

In 2001, a survey and review of the WDPA was commissioned by the World Commission

on Protected Areas and undertaken in partnership with UNEP-WCMC. The review recom-
mended the adoption of the following vision and goals, subsequently adopted by the WCPA
Steering Committee in December 2001 and endorsed by UNEP-WCMC and IUCN:

Vision

A widely available, accurate and up-to-date World Database on Protected Areas that is
accepted as a world standard by all stakeholders (government, intergovernmental and non-
government), providing the essential link to information from multiple sources on protected
areas and contributing to effective resolution of protected area planning and management
issues at global, regional and national levels.

Goals

Readily available information on protected areas to support assessment, monitoring,
decision-making and development of policy at national and international levels.

A core database on protected areas that is internationally recognised, current and
managed to international standards.

Improved access to information on protected areas that is already available on the
Internet and gradual increases in the information available.

Improved use of information and sharing of experience by protected area professionals.

In June 2002 the WCPA, IUCN, UNEP-WCMC and other organisations agreed to progress

the development of the WDPA through the formation of a Consortium of co-operative
stakeholders. The Consortium currently comprises representatives from intergovernmental
and non-government organisations, including the major global conservation organisations.
Since the formation of the Consortium, members have made valuable contributions to the
WDPA, including data that has improved the quality of information in the

2003 UN List

Current members of the Consortium are:

American Museum of Natural History

BirdLife International

Conservation Biology Institute

Conservation International

Convention on Biological Diversity Secretariat

Fauna & Flora International

Ramsar Convention Secretariat

The Nature Conservancy

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

3. Compilation of the

2003 UN List of

Protected Areas

Derivation of 2003 data

Participation of national protected area agencies and other organisations in updating data in the
WDPA is central to the UN List process.

In May 2002 the UNEP Executive Director and IUCN Director General jointly wrote to

national environment ministers, seeking their cooperation in updating protected areas in-
formation for their respective countries. At the same time, the WDPA Consortium members
agreed to contribute the WDPA country and regional protected area information that they held,
or to which they had access. Since the UN List is essentially based on the information provided
by national agencies, either directly or through delegated authorities such as the European
Environment Agency (EEA), it was important to include the broader WDPA Consortium
information before sending the information to countries for verification. This initial process
resulted in updates to 42 countries. A further nine updates were provided by other organi-
sations outside of the Consortium.

Following this process, UNEP-WCMC sent requests for updates and verification to 183

countries in November-December 2002, with hard copies of each country’s protected areas
information held in the WDPA. Explanatory notes to assist countries in completing the update
were also provided, including information on the IUCN protected area definition and appli-
cation of the management categories.

Through its cooperative agreement with UNEP-WCMC, the EEA undertook, through the

European Topic Centre on Nature Protection & Biodiversity (ETC/NPB), the updating of data
for the 38 countries covered by its authority. Although requests were sent to individual
countries in Southeast Asia, data were also provided by the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation (ARCBC) for countries in the ASEAN
region. In the event that no information was received from official sources, research was
undertaken by UNEP-WCMC to obtain data – wherever possible – from published material
and other sources.

UNEP-WCMC received 86 direct official national replies, representing 47% of the total. In

addition, 15 official responses were received from European countries through the EEA/
ETC-NC 2003 review of Europe in time for inclusion in the

2003 UN List

. However, the

WDPA was updated for all European countries through the Common Database on Designated
Areas (in partnership with EEA) in December 2002. Official data was also received for seven
ASEAN countries through ARCBC, although direct official responses were also received
from five of these countries. In effect, official updates were received from 103 countries, or
56% of all countries, through the combined efforts of UNEP-WCMC, EEA and ARCBC.

Criteria for inclusion

A review of the history of the UN List over the past 40 years shows that compilation of the UN
List has been an evolving process, reflecting:

the broadening of the concepts and values of protected areas that are represented in the
UN List;

the widening of the data collection base from only UN member countries to all countries
– in 1960 there were 99 UN member countries, and 52 responded to the first reporting
process; in 2002/2003 there were 191 UN members of which 103 responded;

the shift in perspective on the size of protected areas to be included in the UN List, from
no restriction to 1,000ha (10km

) or 100ha if the protected area was on an island

, back

to no size restriction in 2003;

the development, refinement and finally adoption in 1994 of the current IUCN Protected
Areas Management Categories system that reflects the range of protected area man-
agement objectives; and

adoption by IUCN at the 1992 World Parks Congress of the current definition of a
protected area that is used as a basis for inclusion in the UN List.

As noted in the introduction, the

2003 UN List

represents a further step in the evolution of

protected areas data presentation. The criteria for inclusion of protected areas in this edition
are:

(1)

All protected areas with and without IUCN management categories, provided that
adequate information is available to ensure that they comply with the IUCN protected
areas definition.

(2)

All protected areas regardless of size.

(3)

All countries and territories.

(4)

International and regional sites: Natural and Mixed World Heritage Sites, Ramsar
Sites, Biosphere Reserves, ASEAN Heritage Sites, European Commission Directive
on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and other regional designations.

Aspects of data presentation

The information provided in the

2003 UN List

is a static snapshot of the World Database on

Protected Areas taken in July 2003. However, data is continuously augmented by information
provided by protected area agencies, organisations, individuals or groups active in protected
areas and conservation. The process of protecting an area can change over time, for example,
changes in size, classification, designation and gazetted status. Although the WDPA holds
information on proposed sites or those subject to designation procedures, these are not
included in the

2003 UN List

Application of the IUCN Protected Area Management Categories

The current six categories system (see box below) was first applied in the

1997 UN List

. In

assigning categories, UNEP-WCMC has largely depended on the information provided by
national governments, even though the IUCN 1994 Guidelines for Protected Area
Management Categories state:

“It…follows from the international nature of the system, and from the need for
consistent application of the categories, that the final responsibility for

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

There was no size restriction in the 1962 List; in subsequent editions to 1974 a formula was adopted by
the International Commission for National Parks: minimum of 2,000ha in countries with a population
density <50 persons/km

or 500ha with a population density >50 persons/km

; then from 1974 to 1997

the criterion was a minimum of 1,000ha (10km

) or 100ha (1km

) on an island if the protected area

included the whole island.

determining categories should be taken at the international level. This could be
IUCN, as advised by its CNPPA and/or the World Conservation Monitoring
Centre (e.g., in the compilation of the UN List) in close collaboration with IUCN.”

A large number of the original IUCN categories were applied by government agencies that

subsequently provided the information to UNEP-WCMC. In addition, in past years UNEP-
WCMC has allocated management categories based on assessment of management objectives
and legislation, and external (non-government) advice for those sites not categorised by
government agencies. Although assignments were made for the

1997 UN List

, the report

noted:

“A major undertaking, completed as part of the preparation for this edition of the
UN List, has been the application of the new IUCN Management Categories….
Application of the new Management Categories system has been a lengthy and
challenging process, requiring the management objectives of each national desig-
nation to be reviewed in relation to the criteria and guidelines established for the
application of the new categories… It is likely, therefore, that not all protected
areas have been allocated to the most appropriate category.”

It is not possible for UNEP-WCMC and IUCN physically to undertake the assessment of

thousands of uncategorised protected areas, and no new assignments have been made for
uncategorised protected areas for the

2003 UN List

. To deal effectively with this issue will

require the collaborative effort of all parties: national agencies and other protected area
owners, IUCN, WCPA, UNEP-WCMC and other conservation organisations. The outputs of
the current IUCN-University of Cardiff-UNEP-WCMC project,

Speaking a Common

Language

, and deliberations at the V

World Parks Congress in September 2003, should also

contribute to a more effective and structured approach to assignment of the categories.

Some protected areas have more than one IUCN category assigned to them. For example,

the vast area of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park in Australia has been assigned Category VI
in its entirety, but has also been officially assigned other relevant categories that relate to
management zones within the park. In the current structure of the WDPA it is not possible to
assign multiple designations in the “IUCN Category” field. The only way to do this currently is
to create separate entries for each area or zone assigned a different category – which would in
effect create “separate” protected areas, and artificially increase the number of sites in the
database. This will be changed, but for the present, additional category assignments within
single protected areas are placed in the “notes” field so that a reviewer can still obtain the
relevant information. With respect to marine areas, changes will be based on the decision of
the WCPA Steering Committee at its meeting in December 2002. That is: “in relation to large
multi-purpose marine protected areas, zonation should be reflected in the World Database on
Protected Areas only under the following conditions: (a) zones are clearly mapped; (b) zones
are clearly defined in accordance with the IUCN protected area categories; and (c) zones are
recognized by law”.

Protected area designations used by countries are not necessarily directly comparable across

countries because of potentially different legislative regimes. Over 1,000 different terms are
known to be used around the world to designate protected areas. This highlights the value of a
single international system for assigning categories based on management objectives, and
therefore the importance of applying the IUCN categories.

3. Compilation of the 2003 UN List of Protected Areas

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Definitions of the IUCN Protected Area Management Categories

CATEGORY Ia

Strict Nature Reserve: protected area managed mainly for science

Area of land and/or sea possessing some outstanding or representative ecosystems, geological or
physiological features and/or species, available primarily for scientific research and/or enviro-
nmental monitoring.

CATEGORY Ib

Wilderness Area: protected area managed mainly for wilderness protection

Large area of unmodified or slightly modified land, and/or sea, retaining its natural character and
influence, without permanent or significant habitation, which is protected and managed so as to
preserve its natural condition.

CATEGORY II

National Park: protected area managed mainly for ecosystem protection and recreation

Natural area of land and/or sea, designated to (a) protect the ecological integrity of one or more
ecosystems for present and future generations, (b) exclude exploitation or occupation inimical to
the purposes of designation of the area and (c) provide a foundation for spiritual, scientific,
educational, recreational and visitor opportunities, all of which must be environmentally and
culturally compatible.

CATEGORY III

Natural Monument: protected area managed mainly for conservation of specific natural
features

Area containing one, or more, specific natural or natural/cultural feature which is of outstanding
or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative or aesthetic qualities or cultural
significance.

CATEGORY IV

Habitat/Species Management Area: protected area managed mainly for conservation
through management intervention

Area of land and/or sea subject to active intervention for management purposes so as to ensure
the maintenance of habitats and/or to meet the requirements of specific species.

CATEGORY V

Protected Landscape/Seascape: protected area managed mainly for landscape/ seascape
conservation and recreation

Area of land, with coast and sea as appropriate, where the interaction of people and nature over
time has produced an area of distinct character with significant aesthetic, ecological and/or
cultural value, and often with high biological diversity. Safeguarding the integrity of this
traditional interaction is vital to the protection, maintenance and evolution of such an area.

CATEGORY VI

Managed Resource Protected Area: protected area managed mainly for the sustainable
use of natural ecosystems

Area containing predominantly unmodified natural systems, managed to ensure long-term
protection and maintenance of biological diversity, while providing at the same time a sus-
tainable flow of natural products and services to meet community needs.

4. Layout of the

2003 UN List

Country summaries

A synthesis of each country’s data precedes the site listings, with information provided in the
following format:

INDIA

ISO Code: IND

Last Official Response: 2003

Country Summary

Number

Area (ha)

Category Ia

133,010

Category Ib

20,000

Category II

3,642,484

Category IV

515

11,965,267

Category VI

1,138,500

Subtotal

612

16,899,261

Other

337,291

Total

668

17,103,542

National sites

Protected areas are listed by country, in alphabetic order of the English-language version of the
country name. These are named by national designation (for example, national parks, nature
reserves, wildlife sanctuaries) in the following format:

AUSTRALIA

National Protected Areas

Name

Latitude/

Longitude

Size (ha)

Year of

establishment

IUCN

Management

Category

Last WDPA

update

Commonwealth Marine Park

Great Barrier
Reef

20°00’S/150°00’W

34,540,000

1979

2003

The latitude/longitude is based on a centre-point of the protected area. The year of estab-

lishment reflects when the current legal designation was applied; in some cases this may be
more recent than the original date of establishment, for example where the legal designation of
a site has changed. For some countries, such as Australia, Canada, India and the US, protected
areas are listed by state, province and territory. In some cases, the names of protected areas are
repeated with different site codes

(for example, Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park x 20548,

A code used by UNEP-WCMC to identify sites within the WDPA.

22673, 32376, 42065, and 8434). The reasons for this vary, but could result from variable
locations (for example, “cluster” protected areas with the same designation), different ad-
ministrative and/or management arrangements.

The

2003 UN List

also contains 3,223 individual datasheets, hyperlinked from site names

where a sheet is available for that site. The datasheets hold additional information on aspects
relating to the ecological attributes and management of the area concerned. In addition, locator
maps are provided indicating the location, and the source of GIS data for the protected area. It
should be noted that many datasheets were prepared using information from earlier IUCN and
(then) WCMC publications and require updating. It is hoped that eventually links can be
established from the UNEP-WCMC website directly to those of individual protected areas or
national agencies where up-to-date information is held.

International sites

It should be noted that sites listed under ‘International Sites’ will also appear in the country
lists of protected areas.

World Heritage Sites

The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage was
adopted in Paris in 1972, and came into force in December 1975. The Convention is
administered by UNESCO and provides for the designation of areas of “outstanding universal
value” as World Heritage sites, with the principal aim of fostering international cooperation in
safeguarding these important areas.

Every year the World Heritage Committee evaluates nominations by States Party to the

Convention, taking into account assessments made by the Advisory Bodies: IUCN for natural
and mixed site nominations; and ICOMOS for cultural sites. Information on the current 172
natural and mixed sites is presented in the

2003 UN List

To be included on the World Heritage List, sites must satisfy one or more of the selection

criteria in the World Heritage Operational Guidelines, the main operational document on
World Heritage. The criteria have been revised regularly by the Committee to match the
evolution of the World Heritage concept.

Natural World Heritage properties should:

be outstanding examples representing major stages of the Earth’s history, including the
record of life, significant ongoing geological processes in the development of land-
forms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features, or

ii.

be outstanding examples representing significant ongoing ecological and biological
processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and
marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals, or

iii.

contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and
aesthetic importance, or

iv.

contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in situ conservation of
biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding
universal value from the point of view of science or conservation.

Mixed sites have both universally outstanding natural and cultural values. Since 1992

significant interactions between people and the natural environment have also been recognised
through the listing of cultural landscapes (which are not included in the UN List). Protection,
management and integrity of the site are important considerations in World Heritage listing. If

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

these aspects are severely compromised, the World Heritage Committee may designate a site
“in danger”, based on an assessment of the severity of threats that may affect its World
Heritage values.

In the

2003 UN List

, World Heritage Sites are listed in alphabetical order of the English-

language version of the country name, in the following format. Note that only countries with
World Heritage Sites are listed. Sites that are on the World Heritage In Danger List in July
2003 are indicated accordingly.

World Heritage Sites

CÔTE D’IVOIRE

Name

Natural

Mixed

Year of

inscription

Criteria

Latitude/Longitude

Size (ha)

In-

danger

status

2003

Comoé
National
Park

1983

N (ii) (iv)

8°05’-9°06’N/3°01’-4°04’W

1,149,250

A further feature of the

2003 UN List

is the inclusion of information datasheets for each

World Heritage Site. These site sheets are prepared by UNEP-WCMC for IUCN as part of the
nominated site evaluation process, updated by site evaluators and maintained in the database
for those sites that are inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Biosphere Reserves

Biosphere

reserves

are

areas

terrestrial

and

coastal/marine

ecosystems

that

are internationally recognised under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme.
They are designed to promote and demonstrate a balanced relationship between people and
nature. The reserves are nominated by national governments and remain under the sovereign
jurisdiction of the States where they are situated. In 2003, there are 436 Biosphere Reserves
recorded in the UN List.

The definition, criteria, and designation procedure of Biosphere Reserves are set out in the

Statutory Framework adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in 1995. The

Seville

Strategy for Biosphere Reserves

identifies objectives for the reserves at site, national

and international levels. Many of the sites have been designated for over 20 years and hence
are subject to the Periodic Review foreseen under Article 9 of the Statutory Framework. This
review aims to encourage the authorities concerned to revise their Biosphere Reserves in the
light of the Statutory Framework. Biosphere Reserves form a world network for promoting
cooperative research and monitoring as well as exchange of information, and development of
strong regional sub-networks.

In the

2003 UN List

, Biosphere Reserves are listed by country, in alphabetic order of the

English-language version of the country name, in the following format. Note that only
countries with Biosphere Reserves are listed.

4. Layout of the 2003 UN List

Biosphere Reserves

PERU

Name

Latitude/Longitude

Size (ha)

Year of designation

Reserva de la Biósfera de
Huascarán

9°45’S/77°28’W

399,239

1977

Reserva de la Biósfera del Manu

12°11’S/71°47’W

1,881,200

1977

Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites)

The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat
was signed in Ramsar (Iran) in 1971, and came into force in December 1975. This Convention
provides a framework for international cooperation for the conservation of wetland habitats. It
places general obligations on contracting Party States relating to the conservation of wetlands
throughout their territories, with special obligations pertaining to those wetlands that have
been placed on the List of Wetlands of International Importance. In 2003, there are 1,305
designated wetlands.

Each State Party is obliged to list at least one site. Wetlands are defined by the Convention

as: areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temp-
orary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine
waters, the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres.

In the

2003 UN List

, Ramsar Sites are listed by country in alphabetic order of the

English-language version of the country name, in the following format. Note that only
countries with Ramsar Sites are listed.

Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites)

SWEDEN

Name

Latitude/Longitude

Size (ha)

Year of designation

Träslövsläge-Morups
Tånge

56° 58’ 59"N/12° 19’ 59"E

1,990

1989

Tysjöarna

63° 14’N/14° 35’ 59"E

410

2001

European Commission Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds (Birds Directive,
1979)

The Birds Directive has been in force since April 1981 and imposes legal obligations on
European Union Member States to maintain populations of naturally occurring wild birds at
levels corresponding to ecological requirements, to regulate trade in birds, to limit hunting of
species able to sustain exploitation, and to prohibit certain methods of capture and killing.
Article 4 requires Member States to take special measures to conserve the habitat of certain
listed threatened bird species as well as migratory bird species, particularly with regard to
wetlands, through the designation of Special Protection Areas (SPAs). To date 1,496 SPAs
have been established. All SPAs form part of NATURA 2000, the EU network of protected
areas.

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

List of Special Protection Areas (EC Directive 79/409)

IRELAND

Name

Latitude/Longitude

Size (ha)

Ballyallia Lake

52° 53’N/008° 59’W

308

Ballycotton Bay

51° 50’N/008° 00’W

Other protected area-related regional agreements

There are a number of other European agreements requiring establishment of protected areas
that are included in the UN List:

Council of Europe – Biogenetic Reserves (340 sites)

Barcelona Convention – Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance (230
sites)

EC Habitats Directive – Special Areas for Conservation (212 sites)

European Diploma Type ‘A’ (36 sites), Type ‘B’ (11 sites), Type ‘C’ (7 sites)

Helsinki Convention – Baltic Sea Protected Areas (3 sites)

In addition to the European sites, there are 11 sites listed as ASEAN Heritage Parks and

Reserves under the

ASEAN Declaration on Heritage Parks and Reserves

(1984).

4. Layout of the 2003 UN List

5. Information gaps, limitations and

explanatory notes

It should be noted that information is not necessarily complete for each country – especially for
countries that have not provided updates during 2002–2003. The dataset for the

2003 UN List

is also subject to the following limitations:

The size is unknown for 23,428 (23%) protected areas. This means that the extent of
regional and global protected areas networks is somewhat under-represented, although
the missing information is largely that of the smaller sites.

The date of establishment is unknown for 48,654 protected areas. In this case, the
database reflects the date of entry of the protected area into the database. In some years,
when bulk updates occur

this can artificially inflate the number of protected areas

registered in that year (this acts as a crude proxy indicating that the sites were es-
tablished “no later than” this date). As information about the year of protected area
establishment is obtained these sites are recorded against their correct year.

IUCN management categories have not been assigned to 34,036 protected areas.

Geographic co-ordinates are still lacking for 20,634 sites.

UNEP-WCMC does not yet have the geographical boundaries (polygons) of 74,512
protected areas

. Although this is a large figure, the larger sites (>100km

) have a much

better coverage than the small sites. This problem still limits the extent to which
terrestrial and marine protected areas can be treated separately or compared, and
constrains GIS analyses of the representativeness of protected areas. In the case of
marine protected areas, 1,799 out of the 4,459 (over 40%) in the WDPA have polygons.
However, in terms of area, 89% of the marine protected areas are in the form of
polygons. This due to the inclusion of single large marine protected areas, such as the
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

Translation of some languages, such as Chinese and Arabic, into English can lead to
unintentional duplication of site records when updates are received with apparently
different site names, which are actually transliteration variants. This has at times
resulted in some duplication of sites. An intensive effort was made during the pro-
duction of the

2003 UN List

to minimise this problem. However, it is estimated that this

type of error could affect 5%–7% of the database for these countries, and support is
urgently needed from the relevant nations to rectify this problem.

The WDPA is attempting to incorporate privately owned and managed protected areas,
even where these do not have legal protection, and these are included (for the first time)

For example, for the UN List years and in 2001 when a bulk update of the European Common Database
on Designated Areas (CDDA) took place.

UNEP-WCMC has in fact made considerable progress in obtaining GIS boundary data for many of the
world’s protected areas, which is now linked to the aspatial information contained in the WDPA.
However, it should be noted that some countries, although providing this information, have placed
restrictions on its use and availability through licence agreements with UNEP-WCMC.

6. Analysis of global protected area

trends

The compilation of the UN List, through the WDPA updating process, provides a unique
opportunity to review and summarise the status of the world’s protected areas. The UN List
provides the basis for assessing:

growth in protected area numbers and extent at national, regional and global levels, as
well as sub-national (province, state) levels for a number of countries;

application of IUCN management categories, and the trends in protected area estab-
lishment on the basis of management objectives at sub-national, national, regional and
global levels;

extent of global protection for the world’s biomes;

growth in international sites, and the extent of application of international conventions
and programmes;

gaps in the global system of protected areas, and future priorities for action.

The data provided in the

2003 UN List

will enable various analyses to be undertaken by a

range of data users – especially with the new format that now includes all protected areas. The
information is presented so that separate analyses can be undertaken using the total protected
area numbers and area, or using only those that have been assigned IUCN management
categories. The following sections provide key analyses of the global data undertaken by
UNEP-WCMC.

Number and extent of the world’s protected areas

The

2003 UN List

contains 102,102 protected areas covering more than 18.8 million km

. This

figure is equivalent to 12.65% of the Earth’s land surface, or an area greater than the combined
land area of China, South Asia and Southeast Asia. If marine protected areas are excluded from
these calculations (see discussion of marine areas below) the terrestrial extent of protected
areas is some 17.1 million km

(11.5% of the land surface). This is almost the same area as the

entire continent of South America. Summary statistics are presented in Table 1 and Figure 1.
The total number and extent of protected areas presents the current global overview of the
status of protection. However, it is the classification of protected areas into IUCN
Management Categories that enables a distinction to be made on the basis of management
objectives that countries are applying to their conservation estate, ranging from sites that are
strictly protected through to those under sustainable use. This is the second UN List to present
protected areas data using the six management categories system. The 2003 figures highlight
the importance of the categories in establishing an international standard for classifying
protected areas, and also the extent to which they are being applied by governments and other
bodies that manage protected areas.

The overview of global statistics indicates that 67% of the world’s protected areas have been

assigned an IUCN management category, covering 81% of the total area protected. Among the
categorised sites, the largest number lie within Category IV (Habitat/Species Management

Area) and Category III (Natural Monument). Together they comprise almost 47% of all
protected areas. This is not surprising, since protected areas assigned to these categories often
cover small geographic areas – especially in the case of Category III. Many of these small
protected areas have been excluded in previous UN Lists because their areas are less than
10km

. Examination of the regional data (see Annex) also reveals that some regions have large

numbers of Category IV sites, notably South Asia (44.5% of all protected areas), Europe
(39%), and North Eurasia (29.6%). Both South Asia and North Eurasia have large areas of
Category IV (5.5% and 48.1% respectively). Categories Ia, Ib, II, V and VI together only
comprise 20% of the total number of protected areas with Category II (National Park)
comprising 3.8% and Category VI (Managed Resource Protected Area) 4%.

Turning to category by area, the picture changes dramatically, with Category II and

Category VI comprising 47% of all protected areas. But this is not surprising, since national
parks, in terms of management objectives, have traditionally been established to protect larger
areas at the ecosystem and landscape level. The 2003 figures reflect the trend in previous UN
Lists, although in relative terms the extent of Category II is marginally less than it was in 1997.
However, the considerable extent of Category VI is a relatively recent phenomenon. It was the
most significant innovation in the last revision of IUCN’s management category system, and
recognised the important role protected areas play in the sustainable livelihoods of local
people. Whilst dedicated to biodiversity conservation, such sites accommodate local people
and a degree of sustainable use as an integral part of site management. In the

1997 UN List

Category VI sites accounted for 27% of the total extent of recorded protected areas using the
criteria for that UN List. If non-categorised protected areas are excluded from the 2003 figures
(see discussion below and Table 2), 28.9% of the area of protected areas has been assigned to
Category VI. Two of the world’s largest protected areas are classified as Category VI, namely
the Ar-Rub’al–Khali Wildlife Management Area (640,000km

) in Saudi Arabia and the Great

Barrier Reef Marine Park in Australia (345,400km

). Together, these two sites account for

22.5% of the total area under this management category – although it should be noted that the
total area of the GBRMP has been subdivided into other IUCN categories based on the
management objectives of legally defined zones within the park.

For comparative purposes, Table 2 presents the indicative ranking of 1997 and 2003

proportional percentage values by IUCN category (that is, excluding sites without categories).
Some aspects of the global pattern of protected areas remain unchanged. These include:
Category IV the most numerous; Category II the greatest extent; and Categories Ia and Ib the
least in number and extent. The substantial increase in the numbers of Categories III and IV
can be explained by the inclusion of all size classes in the

2003 UN List

. The inclusion of all

sizes also affects the proportional relationship of other categories.

Figure 2 shows the distribution of protected areas by size class. Of the 102,102 protected

areas recorded in the

2003 UN List

, 59,478 (58.25%) are less than 10km

in size. There are

41,997 (41.13%) with IUCN categories (see Figures 3 and 4).

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

6. Analysis of global protected area trends

Figure 1. Global protected area number and extent 2003

34,036

33.4%

4,123

6,555

6.4%

27,641

27.1%

19,833

19.4%

3,881

3.8%

1,302

1.3%

4,731

4.6%

Total Global Number PAs: 102,102

Global: Number and percentage distribution of categorised and non-categorised

protected areas

3,569,820

19%

4,377,091

23.3%

1,056,088

5.6%

3,022,515

16.1%

275,432

1.5%

4,413,142

23.5%

1,015,512

5.4%

1,033,888

5.5%

Total Global Protected Area:

18,763,407 Km

Global: Area (km

) and percentage distribution of categorised and non-categorised

protected areas

Table 1. Global number and extent of protected areas

Category

No. of

sites

Proportion of total no.

protected areas

(%)

Area Covered

(km²)

Proportion of

total area protected

(%)

4,731

4.6

1,033,888

5.5

1,302

1.3

1,015,512

5.4

3,881

3.8

4,413,142

23.6

III

19,833

19.4

275,432

1.5

27,641

27.1

3,022,515

16.1

6,555

6.4

1,056,008

5.6

4,123

4.0

4,377,091

23.3

No Category

34,036

33.4

3,569,820

19.0

Total

102,102

100.00

18,763,407

100.00

Table 2. Indicative ranking of 1997 and 2003 proportional percentage values by

IUCN Category (excluding non-categorised sites)

1997

2003

Number (%)

Area (%)

Number (%)

Area (%)

28.4

30.3

40.6

29.0

19.0

27.3

III

29.1

28.8

15.6

18.6

9.6

19.9

17.5

8.0

7.0

11.2

7.41

6.1

6.8

5.1

7.11

5.7

6.7

III

3.2

III

1.5

1.9

III

1.8

Growth of the world’s protected areas

The continuing growth in the world’s protected areas is illustrated in Figures 5–7. Figure 5
depicts the cumulative number (line) and total area (columns) of protected areas in five-year
increments, commencing in 1872 (the establishment of Yellowstone National Park). Protected
areas where the year of establishment is not known are included in the 2003 total. It should be
noted that the cumulative graph is only indicative of the general trend. As noted earlier in the
discussion, major data inputs since the

1997 UN List

have included large numbers of sites

without dates, therefore it is not possible to accurately represent growth in protected areas
during this period. In Figure 5, as noted in the

1997 UN List

analysis, the columns indicating

the cumulative total area protected “show little or no sign of any declining rate of estab-
lishment, perhaps contradicting the widely held view that opportunities to establish new
protected areas are diminishing”. However, Figures 6 and 7 show the more detailed cumu-
lative growth for the period 1997–2003. Figure 6 indicates a significant increase in Categories
III and IV, and in non-categorised protected areas. The areas shown in Figure 7 reflect an
increase in Category IV and those without categories. Although the data for Category VI show

6. Analysis of global protected area trends

little change in the number, the total area shows a marked increase, perhaps as a result of
extensions to existing sites.

Since the V

World Parks Congress will be convened in 2003 it is appropriate to highlight

the growth in protected areas using as a benchmark the years in which the World Parks
Congress has been held (data derived from WDPA records, not figures published in previous
UN Lists):

Table 3. Protected areas in World Parks Congress years

Year

Number

Area

1962

9,214

2.4 million km

1972

16,394

4.1 million km

1982

27,794

8.8 million km

1992

48,388

12.3 million km

2003

102,102

18.8 million km

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Figure 5. Cumulative growth in protected areas by 5-year increment: 1872–2003

to be largely or entirely marine, the current best estimate for actual protected sea area is 1.64
million km

, or 8.7% of the 2003 global total of 18.8 million km

. This figure represents only

0.5% of the surface area of the oceans.

Extent of protection of the world’s terrestrial biomes

The extent to which the global protected areas network is representative of the world’s major
terrestrial biomes is summarised in Table 4, based on Udvardy’s biogeographical clas-
sification. The Udvardy system is used so that a comparison can be made with analysis
undertaken at UNEP-WCMC by Green and Paine

, which was based on the

1997 UN List

data.

However, it should be noted that the 1997 analysis under-represented the protection of biomes
by about 30%. This is because only 16,636 (55%) of the 30,350 protected areas were
classified, although the data used represented just over 70% of the global protected areas
network at that time.

The present analysis suggests that the 10% target established for the protection of biomes at

the III

World Parks Congress in 1982 has been reached or exceeded for nine of the 14 biomes.

It can be seen from the current analysis that there is a substantial increase in the coverage of
some biomes, notably Tropical Humid Forests (23.3% from 8.8%), Subtropical/Temperate
Rainforests (16.9% from 10.3%) and Mixed Island Ecosystems (29.7% from 16.32%). This
increase results from the additional, recent protected areas information that has been input to
the WDPA for both categorised and non-categorised sites. For example, excluding sites
without categories, protected area coverage of the Tropical Humid Forests biome would have
increased to 12.9%. The biomes that still fall well short of the target are Lake Systems (1.54%)
and Temperate Grasslands (4.59%) – also noted by Green and Paine in 1997. The V

World

Parks Congress will present an opportunity to review the efficacy of using the Udvardy biome
approach

vis-à-vis

other methods of biogeographic region analysis. Another issue that needs to

be addressed is conservation of marine ecosystems through a global, ecologically repre-
sentative system of protected areas. The importance of this issue was highlighted by the World
Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg in 2002. Consequently, the
WSSD Plan of Implementation calls for the establishment of effective marine protected area
systems by 2012.

As well as ensuring biogeographic and ecosystem representativeness, it is essential that

existing protected areas are effectively managed to ensure that the objectives for establishing
protected areas are achieved. The statistical, mainly quantitative, overview provided by the
UN List provides no basis for assessing this effectiveness.

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Michael J.B. Green and James Paine, State of the World’s Protected Areas at the End of the Twentieth
Century. Paper presented at IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas Symposium on ‘Protected
Areas in the 21st Century: From Islands to Networks’, Albany, Australia, 24–29th November 1997.

Table

Extent

protection

the

world’s

major

terrestrial

biomes

BIOMES

(Udvardy,

1975)

Protected

Areas

–

2003

List

Biome

name

Area

(km

)

Total

number

(incl.

sites

with

area)

Extent

(km

)

Number

sites

with

area

Biome

Protected

2003

1997

Analysis

Tropical

Humid

Forests

10,513,210

3,422

2,450,344

623

23.31

8.77

Subtropical/Temperate

Rainforests/Woodlands

3,930,979

6,196

665,174

227

16.92

10.29

Temperate

Needle-Leaf

Forests

/Woodlands

15,682,817

13,297

1,350,221

3,455

8.61

5.72

Tropical

Dry

Forests/Woodlands

17,312,538

5,746

2,210,563

1,551

12.77

7.07

Temperate

Broad-leaf

Forests

11,216,659

35,735

856,502

9,341

7.64

3.60

Evergreen

Sclerophyllous

Forests

3,757,144

5,334

399,587

693

10.64

4.39

Warm

Deserts/Semi-Deserts

24,279,843

2,008

2,492,377

908

10.27

4.83

Cold-Winter

Deserts

9,250,252

1,235

704,037

580

7.61

5.90

Tundra

Communities

22,017,390

405

2,606,041

11.84

8.38

Tropical

Grasslands

Savannahs

4,264,832

318

654,310

15.34

7.42

Temperate

Grasslands

8,976,591

3,533

411,839

852

4.59

0.98

Mixed

Mountain

Systems

10,633,145

9,345

1,735,828

1,388

16.32

9.10

Mixed

Island

Systems

3,252,563

3,425

967,129

364

29.73

16.32

Lake

Systems

517,695

261

7,989

128

1.54

1.12

TOTAL

145,605,658

90,260

17,511,941

20,175

12.03

6.52

6. Analysis of global protected area trends

Analysis by regions

This edition of the UN List includes analyses of regional protected area statistics. The global
divisions used are based on the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas terrestrial
regions (South America and Brazil regions have been combined). The rationale for choosing
IUCN, rather than United Nations, regions, is based on: their geographic logic; the long-
standing relationship of the WCPA to the UN List process; the global representation of the
WCPA network; the WCPA role in encouraging adoption of the IUCN management cate-
gories; and the fact that the V

World Parks Congress is to be convened later in 2003. The

statistics presented in the

2003 UN List

will assist, as they have done for previous congresses

spanning 40 years, in the presentations and debates in Durban in September 2003.

Analyses for the WCPA regions are presented as pie charts showing the key statistics for

number and area. The charts reveal considerable variation from region to region in terms of the
application of IUCN management categories, and the different emphases placed on manage-
ment objectives for protected areas. A summary of the major category type in each region, by
area, is presented in Table 5. Where most sites are not categorised (NC), the figure is included
with the highest percentage IUCN category.

Table 5. Predominant categories in IUCN WCPA regions by area

IUCN WCPA Region

Predominant Category

% Area Protected

Antarctic

81.0

Australia and New Zealand

39.8

Caribbean

39.0

Central America

34.6
19.7

East Asia

44.2

Eastern and Southern Africa

31.9
28.3

Europe

46.1

North Africa and Middle East

62.0

North America

36.7

North Eurasia

48.1

Pacific

52.6

South America and Brazil

52.4
17.5

South Asia

50.5

Southeast Asia

26.8

Western and Central Africa

34.1

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Annex. Protected Area Number and Extent by IUCN WCPA Region

Antarctic

Region contains: Antarctica, Bouvet Island, Falkland Islands, French Southern Territories, Heard and McDonald
Islands, St. Helena, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Australia and New Zealand

III

No category

3.2%

0.8%

4.0%

18.3%

1.6%

2.4%

69.8%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

0.01%

461

0.7%

146

0.2%

1,537

2.2%

68,140

96.9%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

391

4.5%

404

4.6%

225

2.6%

1,230

14.1%

3,860

44.2%

640

7.3%

0.4%

1,938

22.2%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

728

0.1%

472,424

39.8%

47,130

4.0%

77,640

6.5%

33,576

2.8%

294,937

24.8%

41,128

3.5%

219,757

18.5%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas

in Region: 126

Total Area Protected in

Region: 70,294 km

(0.5% land area)

Total Protected Areas

in Region: 8,724

Total Area Protected in

Region: 1,187,320 km

(14.82% land area)

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Central America

Region contains: Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador

Caribbean

Region contains: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Cuba,
Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands
Antilles, Puerto Rico, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and
Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Virgin Islands (British), Virgin Islands (US)

1,776

2.6%

20,199

29.1%

10,026

14.4%

9,672

13.9%

414

0.6%

27,101

39.0%

0.1%

183

0.3%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

10.4%

2.0%

203

26.6%

4.3%

11.5%

6.2%

2.5%

278

36.5%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

28,346

19.5%

1,520

1.0%

12,643

8.7%

10,556

7.3%

28,595

19.7%

8,206

5.6%

5,129

3.5%

50,328

34.6%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Area Protected

in Region: 69,470 km

(29.59% land area)

Total Protected Areas

in Region: 762

Total Area Protected in

Region: 145,322 km

(27.86% land area)

10.4%

2.0%

203

26.6%

4.3%

11.5%

6.2%

2.5%

278

36.5%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas

in Region: 953

Annex. Protected Area Number and Extent by IUCN WCPA Region

Eastern and Southern Africa

Region contains: Botswana, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mayotte, Mozambique,
Namibia, Réunion, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania,
Zambia, Zimbabwe

3,875

79.9%

0.3%

0.1%

217

4.5%

0.5%

223

4.6%

0.6%

463

9.5%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

628,512

31.9%

556,418

28.3%

12,548

0.64%

261,122

13.3%

150

0.01%

504,692

25.7%

2,550

0.13%

1,251

0.06%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

East Asia

Region contains: China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Japan, Macao, Mongolia, Republic
of Korea, Taiwan, Province of China

291

13.9%

325

15.5%

3.7%

4.7%

2.3%

3.1%

412

19.6%

780

37.2%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

otal Protected Areas

in Region: 2,098

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 4,852

Total Area Protected in

Region: 1,967,242 km

(17.17% land area)

82,516

8.0%

120,469

11.7%

20,804

2.0%

107,127

10.4%

455,688

44.2%

91,837

8.9%

35,153

3.4%

118,219

11.5%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Area Protected in

Region: 1,031,813 km

(8.77% land area)

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

North Africa and Middle East

Region contains: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Islamic Republic of, Iraq, Israel, Jordan,
Kuwait, Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syrian Arab Republic,
Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Western Sahara, Yemen

Europe

Region contains: Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech
Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Federal Republic of Germany, Finland, France, Gibraltar, Greece,
Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Monaco,
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Svalbard and Jan
Mayen Islands, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Vatican City State (Holy See), Yugoslavia,

17,847

41.5%

202

0.5%

2,861

6.7%

16,797

39%

3,696

8.6%

273

0.6

419

1.0%

923

2.1%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

116,751
15

.6%

21,982

2.9%

345,821

46.1%

90,023

12%

3,969

0.5%

98,165

13.1%

4,306

0.6%

69,207

9.2%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

517

45.6%

2.5%

158

13.9%

277

24.4%

2.6%

0.2%

6.4%

4.4%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

215,852

17.0%

12,413

1.0%

77,079

6.1%

114,358

9.0%

0.0%

5,252

0.4%

788,818

62.0%

59,037

4.6%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas

in Region: 43,018

Total Area Protected in

Region: 750,225 km

(14.63% land area)

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 1,133

Total Area Protected in

Region: 1,272,840 km

(9.92% land area)

Annex. Protected Area Number and Extent by IUCN WCPA Region

North Eurasia

Region contains: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Republic of Moldova,
Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

North America

Region contains: Canada, Greenland, Mexico, St. Pierre and Miquelon, United States

5,202

38.9%

1,283

9.6%

2,084

15.6%

1,323

9.9%

569

4.3%

1,362
10.2%

701

5.2%

845

6.3%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

57,388

66,838

1.5%

1.3%

475,327

10.4%

1,670,465

36.7%

72,554

1.6%

737,151

16.2%

135,401

3.0%

1,337,781

29.4%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

5,267

29.6%

11,318

63.5%

195

1.1%

417

2.3%

0.30%

407

2.3%

0.37%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

84,216

4.6%

14,785

0.8%

359,038

19.8%

332,118

18.3%

126,989

7.0%

25,479

1.4%

874,110

48.1%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 13,369

Total Area Protected in

Region: 4,552,905 km

(20.79% land area)

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 17,724

Total Area Protected in

Region: 1,816,735 km

(8.22% land area)

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

South America and Brazil

Region contains: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Paraguay,
Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela

Pacific

Region contains: American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands,
Micronesia (Federated States of), Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New
Guinea, Pitcairn, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, United States Minor Outlying Islands,
Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna Islands

136

42.4%

12.5%

3.4%

21.2%

5.9%

6.2%

8.4%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

1,882

9.2%

10,783

52.6%

0.2%

1,104

5.4%

282

1.4%

5,536

27.0%

856

4.2%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

1,090

39.7%

320

11.6%

250

9.1%

382

13.9%

2.7%

393

14.3%

0.1%

236

8.6%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

2,075,676

52.4%

641,920

16.2%

269,338

6.8%

102,258

2.6%

86,523

2.2%

694,917

17.5%

1,889

0.05%

90,682

2.3%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 321

Total Area Protected in

Region: 20,489 km

(3.7% land area)

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 2,749

Total Area Protected in

Region: 4,137,180 km

(22.2% land area)

Annex. Protected Area Number and Extent by IUCN WCPA Region

Southeast Asia

Region contains: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar,
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam

South Asia

Region contains: Bangladesh, Bhutan, British Indian Ocean Territory, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri
Lanka

626

42.4%

658

44.5%

0.7%

2.1%

139

9.4%

0.1%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

55,339

17.9%

24,463

7.9%

1,395

0.5%

155,831

50.5%

68,840

22.3%

2,758

0.9%

200

0.1%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

118,882

15.6%

21,030

2.8%

203,556

26.8%

4,349

0.6%

161,310

21.2%

21,317

2.8%

15,646

2.1%

213,698

28.1%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

837

31.5%

831

31.3%

169

6.4%

198

7.5%

2.5%

254

9.6%

0.5%

288

10.8%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 1,477

Total Area Protected in

Region: 308,826 km

(6.87% land area)

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 2,656

Total Area Protected in

Region: 759,788 km

(16.39% land area)

Note that the summary percentage land area statistic given for each region is based on the total area protected.
This is inclusive of both terrestrial and marine surfaces and hence does not give a true representation of the land
area protected. The actual land surface protected in each WCPA region is provided below:

Antarctica

0.0%

North Africa and Middle East

9.7%

Australia/NZ

9.6%

North America (includes Greenland and Hawaii)

18.2%

Brazil

18.3%

North Eurasia

7.2%

Caribbean

11.7%

Pacific

2.1%

Central America

24.8%

South America (Hispanic)

24.9%

East Asia

8.5%

South Asia

6.8%

Eastern and Southern Africa

14.6%

South East Asia

14.8%

Europe

13.1%

Western and Central Africa

8.7%

2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas

Western and Central Africa

Region contains: Angola, Burundi, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Cape Verde, Chad,
Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea,
Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda,
Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo

2,284

87.7%

0.04%

1.8%

146

5.6%

0.2%

3.6%

0.8%

0.3%

Number and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

277,182

24.6%

100

0.01%

67,809

6.0%

384,079

34.1%

4,397

0.4%

357,754

31.8%

22,865

2.0%

11,740

1.0%

Area (km

) and Percentage Distribution

of Categorised and Non-Categorised

Protected Areas

Total Protected Areas in

Region: 2,605

Total Area Protected in

Region: 1,125,926 km

(8.77% land area)

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