Countryside Survey 2007

 

Countryside Survey is a unique and world-leading study of the natural resources of the UK countryside. It involves sending teams of surveyors into the countryside to measure and record many different features in a selection of 1km squares, which are chosen to represent all the types of land in the UK (over 600 squares in total). The first Countryside Survey was carried out in 1978; subsequent Surveys have been undertaken in 1984, 1990, 1998 (reported in 2000) and 2007 (reporting in 2008).

The Survey assesses habitats and landscape features, vegetation, water courses, soils and land cover using standardised scientific methods and analyses. It also involves the production of a Land Cover Map, using satellite imagery to record vegetation types across the UK. The findings of the Survey enable us to track the effects of change in our countryside, which helps to inform policymaking and planning for the future.

Countryside Survey is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council and a partnership of government departments and agencies, including the Forestry Commission. For more information visit the Survey’s website at www.countrysidesurvey.org.uk

What does Countryside Survey do?

• Records and reports on the stock, condition and change of natural resources
• Assesses change in our countryside by comparing what is found in 2007 with earlier surveys (ie. dating back to 1978)
• Improves our understanding of how changes occur in natural resources – and the implications of these changes on ecosystem goods and services
• Delivers widely accessible outputs including reports, datasets, analyses and analytical tools, which can be used alongside data from other projects

• Improving scientific understanding of a range of issues affecting the countryside
• Providing robust and reliable information for policymaking
• Evaluating changes in the extent and distribution of broad and priority habitats
• Examining the relationships between different components of natural resources and the drivers of change
• Making a major contribution to the Government’s reporting of biodiversity outcomes in 2010
• Assessing progress against target indicators in biodiversity strategies for the UK and constituent countries
• Providing baseline data for assessment of (and adaptation to) climate changes impacts

• The 2007 Survey has been increased in size to enable reporting at individual country level (ie. England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), as well as for the UK as a whole.
• The field survey is carried out by over 60 highly qualified surveyors - all of whom undergo an intensive four-week training course to ensure the highest possible level of quality assurance.
• Fieldwork within each 1km square includes mapping broad and priority habitats, as well as linear and point features (eg. hedges and trees); recording 29 vegetation plots (on average); collecting measurements and samples from streams and ponds; collecting soils samples; and taking photographs.
• The fieldwork alone involves roughly 85 years’ worth of study – quite literally a lifetime’s work! This includes over 350 days spent re-visiting sites as part of quality assurance checks.