THRESHOLD FOR DESIGNATION OF SPECIAL AREAS OF CONSERVATION FOR HARBOUR PORPOISE AND OTHER HIGHLY MOBILE, WIDE RANGING MARINE SPECIES

The issues around the potential designation of SACs for harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena in UK waters were originally discussed by the JNCC Joint Committee in 2004. At that time it was decided that, on the basis of the then available information, there was no strong case to support SAC proposals specifically for harbour porpoise. Subsequently, more information on harbour porpoise distribution and abundance has become available. Consequently, this paper considers such information and develops a set of criteria for the designation of SACs for harbour porpoise. Although predominantly focused on offshore sites with consideration given to the grading for this species feature on the dSAC Dogger Bank, the findings are also applicable to inshore sites. A summary is also provided on how other EU Member States have designated their harbour porpoise SACs