National Biodiversity Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (England)

Natural England has developed a GIS model that provides an assessment of the vulnerability of priority habitats to climate change based on principles of adaptation for biodiversity. It identifies why areas are vulnerable and which possible interventions can have the biggest impact in increasing resilience to the changing climate. This will inform prioritisation of adaptation action and assist in the development of adaptation strategies for biodiversity both within Natural England and with our partners. The NBCCVA uses a 200m x200m GIS grid model to assess priority habitats for their Sensitivity to climate change, Adaptive Capacity; including habitat fragmentation, topographic variety and current management and condition and Conservation Value. The metrics can then be added together to produce an overall vulnerability assessment. Key outputs are maps showing the metric results and the range of relative vulnerability across the country, giving a visual representation of the areas vulnerable to climate change.