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21/10/2024

Developing the two Sussex LNRS - where are we in the process? 

 

As we head into the final months of 2024, here's a recap on what has been done this year and what's still to come. 

 

To date, we have:

  • Published maps to show where protected sites & irreplaceable habitats are in Sussex (officially known as the APIB: Areas of Particular Importance for Biodiversity).
  • Written the Description - the long, technical document that underpins both Sussex LNRS. This is now with our Technical Review Panel. 
  • Gathered, consolidated and shared a draft set of 23 Shortlisted habitat priorities and their outcomes.
  • Developed species long lists for each Sussex county, with 1500+ species on each.
  • In the process we have also engaged and captured the views of a huge number of stakeholders including Sussex-based residents, community groups, local councillors, farmers and landowners, large estates, supporting authorities, habitat and species experts, organisations, businesses, and partnerships working for nature to name a few. 

 

The LNRS team presenting to community groups, famer clusters and delivery partners this summer.  

 

The focus for the rest of 2024:  

  • Shortlisting and creating species priorities informed by criteria such as insights from the public survey, and which species need specific interventions to recover their populations beyond more general improvements to habitat.
  • Identifying achievable measures (actions) that can be taken to deliver the priorities. In September we asked members of the Sussex Nature Partnership (key delivery and enabling organisations for nature in Sussex) to create a set of measures for each of the priorities. We're now reviewing these measures, adding other best practice examples and where we can, any associated funding mechanisms.
  • Finding out what action has already taken place, and what is likely to happen in the short term. We've been asking those already active in nature's recovery (our community groups, landowners, farmers and nature partnerships etc.) to tell us what they've already done for nature and what they might be planning. The former helps ground-truth what the state of nature is, and the latter tells us how deliverable a measure in a location might be, if there is an existing project, a funding stream or supportive landowner in place. Let us know about your plans for nature by taking a survey or adding your ideas to our voluntary mapping tool.
  • Mapping! We'll be reviewing and consolidating existing habitat and opportunity maps that are held both nationally and locally, and bringing together local GIS experts to help us develop our LNRS Local Habitat Map. 

 

Looking ahead to 2025: 

  • At the start of next year we'll be pulling everything we've learned together to create two LNRS documents: one covering East Sussex and Brighton & Hove, and the other covering West Sussex.
  • Pre-consultation versions of these must be submitted to Sussex Supporting Authorities for their review, before a public consultation the two documents happens in the summer.
  • Webinars and other activities in 2025 will walk you through the two strategies before public consultation, so you're familiar with what they contain, and how they can help us all recover wildlife and wild spaces in Sussex.