The World Database on Protected Areas Consortium

Silvio Olivieri

WDPA Consortium

The growth of WDPA

• A Success story…– WDPA 2004: double the size of WDPA 2003

in 4 months…– Publication of WDPA 2003 catalyzed interest

in providing new datasets

• the first delivery of the Biodiversity Knowledge Commons

WDPA 2004 Advances

• Double amount of data (1GB)

• GIS data: from 18% of PAs (I-VI) with polygons to 37% coverage

• 10,000 CD-Roms distributed

WDPA 2004 limitations

• Polygon coverage: provide analysis for I-VI in surface area protected and in hotspots.

The 12+ % Protected

• Is the 12+% of Terrestrial Area Protected worldwide an overestimate?…

• Quality of coverage of data sources (i.e. missing data)

• Quality of the data (i.e. wrong data)• Quality control (wrong manipulation of data)

• A role for field based organizations: WCPA and Consortium members

Data quality issues that affects % area protected estimate

• Inaccuracy of point-data surface figures

• Terrestrial / marine components of PAs

• The inclusion of “non-IUCN” areas

• Overlapping PAs (Venezuela worst case)

• Missing data

Data quality issues that affects % area protected estimate

• Inaccuracy of point-data surface figures

• Terrestrial / marine components of PAs

• The inclusion of “non-IUCN” areas

• Overlapping PAs (Venezuela worst case)

• Missing data

Data quality issues that affects % area protected estimate

• Inaccuracy of point-data surface figures

• Terrestrial / marine components of PAs

• The inclusion of “non-IUCN” areas

• Overlapping PAs (Venezuela worst case)

• Missing data

Coiba Marine PA

Tortuguero, Costa Rica

Data quality issues that affects % area protected estimate

• Inaccuracy of point-data surface figures

• Terrestrial / marine components of PAs

• The inclusion of “non-IUCN” areas

• Overlapping PAs (Venezuela worst case)

• Missing data

Non-IUCN PAs

• ~36,000 PAs

• in 186 countries

• of 401 different types

• Include many areas that shuould be in categories I – VI

• Include many that should not be counted for conservation purposes

Non-IUCN PAsCOUNTRY FIRST_DESI COUNT % ot total % cum

United Kingdom Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) 7152 20% 20%

United States National Game Reserve 4390 12% 32%

Finland Protected Mire 3177 9% 41%

Sweden Wildlife and Plant Sanctuary 2666 7% 48%

Norway Bog/Mire Reserve 1619 5% 53%

Netherlands Nature Conservation Law 1548 4% 57%

Uganda Forest Reserve 1404 4% 61%

Nigeria Game Reserve 980 3% 64%

Poland Area of Protected Landscape 860 2% 66%

Canada Provincial Park 789 2% 68%

Tanzania, United Republic of State Forest Reserve 712 2% 70%

Japan Prefectural Wildlife Protection Area 661 2% 72%

Zambia Forest Reserve 606 2% 74%

Malaysia Forest Reserve 601 2% 76%

Belgium State Nature Reserve 558 2% 77%

Brazil Indigenous Area 477 1% 78%

Sri Lanka Jungle Corridor 410 1% 80%

New Zealand Government Purpose Reserve 386 1% 81%

Data quality issues that affects % area protected estimate

• Inaccuracy of point-data surface figures

• Terrestrial / marine components of PAs

• The inclusion of “non-IUCN” areas

• Overlapping PAs (Venezuela worst case)

• Missing data

Venezuela – Brazil border

Data quality issues that affects % area protected estimate

• Inaccuracy of point-data surface figures

• Terrestrial / marine components of PAs

• The inclusion of “non-IUCN” areas

• Overlapping PAs (Venezuela worst case)

• Missing data

PAs w/o geographic locationPAs with 0.00 Values for Latitude and Longitude

     

PA Category Total Count Total Records

National IUCN I-VI PAs

10,872 69,358

National Other PAs

6,948 35,953

International PAs

- 2,515

Total

17,820 107,826

% Total 16.5  

 National IUCN I-VI        

National Other Areas

WCPA RegionTotal Records with 0.0 Lat. &

Lon. Values

Total Records

% PAs with 0.0

Lat. & Lon.

Values  

Total Records with 0.0 Lat. & Lon.

Values

Total Records

% PAs with 0.0

Lat. & Lon.

Values

Antarctic 6 122 4.9   - 4 0.0

Australia and New Zealand 1 9,162 0.0   - 390 0.0

Brazil 310 803 38.6   49 477 10.3

Caribbean 94 738 12.7   47 223 21.1

Central America 23 465 4.9   111 200 55.5

East Asia 121 2,531 4.8   637 726 87.7

Eastern and Southern Africa 72 877 8.2   933 3,777 24.7

Europe 7,556 24,418 30.9   2,750 19,493 14.1

North Africa and Middle East 246 616 39.9   228 517 44.1

North America 863 8,210 10.5   766 5,198 14.7

North Eurasia 569 17,307 3.3   11 405 2.7

Pacific 31 218 14.2   63 175 36.0

South America 69 857 8.1   253 615 41.1

South Asia 92 845 10.9   487 626 77.8

South East Asia 789 1,814 43.5   180 835 21.6

Western and Central Africa 30 375 8.0   433 2,292 18.9

TOTAL 10872 69,358     6948 35,953.00  

Current status

Total PAs in WDPA 2004

Total with GIS data

% with GIS data

National IUCN I to VI 69,358 20,781 30.0%

National Other Protected Areas 35,953 17,959 50.0%

105,311 38,740 36.8%

International2,515 920 36.6%

International (Regional PAs) 3,298 1,407 42.7%

5,813 2,327 40.0%

111,124 41,067 37.0%

International PAs

International(Global agreements)

KnownNumberof Sites

InWDPA 2004

 with GIS data

%with GIS

data 

Biosphere Reserves 440 433 34 7.9%

World Heritage Sites 754 765 184 24.1%

RAMSAR Sites 1,328 1,317 708 53.8%

The Management of WDPA

• Transparent protocols

• Database management integrated in database at field level

• Quality control systems and protocols

The architecture of WDPA

• Missing features in relation to data contents– Marine / terrestrial components of PAs– PAs with zoning, with different IUCN categories– No history of data evolution– No redundant / alternate data– Data estimates for key fields– Data accuracy for key fields– Better management of data sources / metadata

The delivery of the WDPA

• Annual releases of stable versions

• Central database up-to-date

• Proposed architecture called for a service-oriented database that would allow other organizations to link additional data, information or analysis

• WDPA 2004 by COP7• WDPA 2005 (by WCC, November 2004)• Development of WDPA

– Architecture– Decentralization– Transparent Procedures and Protocols– Quality Control– Expand & improve contents

• WDPA Website to link users• Insure sustained funding• Mobilize WCPA members at regional levels• Engage major stakeholders (CBD/CHM,…)

Annual Plan for 2004

Governance

WDPA ConsortiumWDPA Consortium

WDPAWDPA

IUCNIUCN UNEPUNEP

World Commission onProtected Areas

World Commission onProtected Areas

UNEP - World ConservationMonitoring Centre

UNEP - World ConservationMonitoring Centre

WDPA Partners NetworkWDPA Partners NetworkWDPA Advisory CouncilWDPA Advisory Council

• Chinese Academy of Science• Univ. of Buenos Aires• EEA, European Env. Agency• …

• Convention on Biological Diversity• RAMSAR• …

New datasets (partial list)

• Mesoamerica• Brazil• Venezuela• Colombia• Caribbean• Micronesia – Polynesia• Egypt• Iran• …