Terms and Conditions of Use of the World Database on Protected Areas

Access to all WDPA data (or the "WDPA materials") is provided on the understanding that the end-user read and consents to be bound to the terms outlined in these Terms and Conditions of Use.

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS CAREFULLY. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO ANY OF THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS DO NOT DOWNLOAD

NO COMMERCIAL USE
The WDPA and any derivatives must not be used or made available for any Commercial Purpose without permission. Any use of WDPA content by an individual or entity operating within or on behalf of or to the benefit of any organisation other than a not-for-profit organisation will be deemed to be for a Commercial Purpose and will constitute a breach of the Terms and Conditions. To apply for permission for commercial use please send an email to wdpacommercial@unep-wcmc.org outlining your needs.

NO SUB-LICENSING OR REDISTRIBUTING OF WDPA DATA
The WDPA may not be sub-licensed in whole or in part without permission. You may not redistribute the attributes or spatial data contained in the WDPA in whole or in part by any means including (but not limited to) digitally, via web downloads, through web services, interactive web maps or file transfer protocols. If you know of others who wish to use the WDPA we suggest you refer them to this website. If you wish to provide a service though which the attributes and/or spatial data of the WDPA are downloadable or otherwise made available for redistribution please contact protectedareas@unep-wcmc.org for further guidance.

PUBLISHING THE WDPA
You may publish the WDPA in whole or in part, including on-line, providing the attributes and spatial data are not downloadable. You must ensure that the latest released version of the WDPA Materials is being used and the year of release is visible. Material published online must provide a clear link to the original WDPA and the attribution below must be clearly visible in all publications. We recommend that you have the material reviewed by UNEP-WCMC and/or the IUCN-WCPA prior to publication and we require two copies of all published materials be lodged free of charge with the supplier of the dataset, preferably in electronic format via: protectedareas@unep-wcmc.org

ATTRIBUTION
You must ensure that the attribution set out below is always clearly reproduced in the use of any part of the WDPA in any format, so that individual users are made aware of it:

“Protected areas extracted from the 2007 World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA). The WDPA is a joint product of UNEP and the IUCN, prepared by UNEP-WCMC and the IUCN WCPA working with Governments, the Secretariats of MEAs and collaborating NGOs. For further information: protectedareas@unep-wcmc.org”

WDPA UPDATES
Unless required to do so for specific analyses, you should not use any version of the WDPA after it has been superseded by a subsequent version. It is your responsibility to check if an update of the WDPA is available.

NO WARRANTY AND WAIVER OF LIABILITY
The WDPA is provided to you ‘as is’, and no warranty of any kind is given. In consideration of the rights granted in this download, you hereby waive and release UNEP, IUCN and WCMC 2000 from any liability whatsoever and howsoever arising in connection with use of the WDPA. You agree that this waiver and release is effective in any and every jurisdiction in the world. UNEP, IUCN and WCMC 2000 will not be responsible for negligence, strict liability or otherness in the use of WDPA data by you or other users as a result of WDPA data being posted on any website following this download. You download the WDPA at your own discretion and risk and are solely responsible in the event of any damage occurring to computer systems as a result of attempts to download WDPA data.

FEEDBACK AND REVISED INFORMATION
In order to keep the WDPA up to date, UNEP and IUCN would like you to provide feedback on the quality, reliability and accuracy of the WDPA. We also welcome revised information on the WDPA in the form of GIS data, electronic images, paper maps, tables, GPS coordinates, and/or in any other useable format. Such contributions should be free of restrictions. The objective is to improve the WDPA for the benefit of the global conservation community. You can register to submit electronic protected area data via the WDPA website.

LAW AND JURISDICTION
Any dispute arising out of or in connection with this download and the subsequent use of the WDPA shall be settled by amicable negotiation between you and the supplier of the dataset. Should attempts at amicable negotiation fail, any such dispute shall, upon request by either you or the supplier of the WDPA, be referred to arbitration in accordance with the UNCITRAL arbitration rules then prevailing.

COMMUNICATION
Any communication with respect to these Terms and Conditions and any issue arising from them shall be in writing, in English, and sent by email. The address for communication with the WDPA supplier is:protectedareas@unep-wcmc.org

Protected areas are locations which receive protection because of their environmental, cultural or similar value. Countries often have extensive systems of protected areas developed over many years. These systems vary considerably country to country, depending on national needs and priorities, and on differences in legislative, institutional and financial support.

Protected areas transcend different environments from the highest mountains to the deepest sea, across forests, deserts, lakes and even national boundaries (territories).

The WDPA uses the definition of a protected area and marine protected area (MPA) as adopted by IUCN as the main criteria for a locations entry into the database.

Definition of a protected area:
An area of land and/or sea especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and managed through legal or other effective means.
_{(Source: IUCN (1994). Guidelines for Protected Areas Management Categories. IUCN, Cambridge, UK and Gland, Switzerland. 261pp.)}

Definition of a MPA:
Any area of intertidal or subtidal terrain, together with its overlying water and associated flora, fauna, historical and cultural features, which has been reserved by law or other effective means to protect part or all of the enclosed environment.
_{Source: (Kelleher and Kenchington, 1992).}

The first key point of these definitions is that the primary objective of the protected area is conservation of biological diversity. The second key point is that the protection is 'effective'. This will generally mean that the area is protected by an Act of Parliament, in the case of public land, or by a covenant or conservation agreement, in the case of privately owned, or indigenous land.

Protected areas can be established by a number of legislative mechanisms from an Act of Parliament to a conservation agreement.

Typically many protected areas are established (or designated) within a countries national territory (including any maritime claims) using the appropriate legislation or agreement. These protected areas, within the WDPA, are classed as nationally designated.

However there are locations of significant environmental, cultural or natural value that should be protected irrespective of the territory on which they are located. These locations are often recognized, preserved and protected under an international treaty or convention. Within the WDPA these protected areas are classed as internationally recognized.

Protected areas can be both nationally designated and internationally recognized. In some cases an internationally recognized site can be composed of multiple national designated protected areas from different countries.

There are a number of globally and regionally recognized international treaties, conventions and agreements.

The most common global conventions are:

• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites:
  UNESCO seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. This is embodied in an international treaty called the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972.


• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB):
  The Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB), proposes an interdisciplinary research agenda and capacity building aiming to improve the relationship of people with their environment globally. Since its launch in 1970 MAB has concentrated on the development of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR). The biosphere reserve concept was developed initially in 1974 and was substantially revised in 1995 with the adoption by the UNESCO General Conference of the Statutory Framework and the Seville Strategy for Biosphere Reserves.


• The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar Convention):
  The Convention on Wetlands is an intergovernmental treaty adopted on 2 February 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar, on the southern shore of the Caspian Sea. The Convention entered into force in 1975 and now (as of August 2007) has 155 Contracting Parties, or member States, in all parts of the world. The mission of the Ramsar Convention, as adopted by the Parties in 1999 and refined in 2002, is “the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local, regional and national actions and international cooperation, as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world”.
  (link to handy information sheet [PDF].)

There are a number of regional international conventions including:

• EC Birds Directive:
  In 1979, the European Community adopted the Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds (the 'Birds Directive'), in response to the 1979 Bern Convention on the conservation of European habitats and species (the 'Bern Convention'). The Directive provides a framework for the conservation and management of, and human interactions with, wild birds in Europe. It sets broad objectives for a wide range of activities, although the precise legal mechanisms for their achievement are at the discretion of each Member State.
  (Council Directive 79/409/EEC [PDF])


• EC Habitats Directive :
  In 1992 the European Community adopted Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the Conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (EC Habitats Directive). This is the means by which the Community meets its obligations as a signatory of the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (Bern Convention). The main aim of the EC Habitats Directive is to promote the maintenance of biodiversity by requiring Member States to take measures to maintain or restore natural habitats and wild species at a favorable conservation status, introducing robust protection for those habitats and species of European importance.
  (Council Directive 92/43/EEC)


• ASEAN Declaration on Heritage Parks:
  On 29 November 1984 the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes the member countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Cambodia, declared a group of ASEAN Heritage Parks selected from each countries existing protected areas system. They agreed that common cooperation is necessary to conserve and manage such parks and reserves including the setting up of regional conservation and management action as well a regional mechanism complementary to and supportive of national efforts at implementation of conservation measures.

Consistency in comparing protected areas across the world under the IUCN definitions is achieved by the allocation and use of an internationally defined set of management categories, known as IUCN Protected Area Management Categories, used to describe the management intent of the protected area. The WDPA also utilises the IUCN category system, as outlined below. IUCN categories are not applied protected areas established under international conventions or agreements (e.g. UNESCO World Heritage Sites).

The categories include a definition outlining key aspects within the management intent of the protected area alongside an example designation.

Category Ia

Protected Area managed mainly for science (example is Strict Nature Reserve)

Area of land and/or sea possessing some outstanding or representative ecosystems, geological or physiological features and/or species, available primarily for scientific research and/or environmental monitoring.

Category Ib

Protected Area managed mainly for wilderness protection (example is a Wilderness Area)

Large area of unmodified or slightly modified land and/or sea, retaining its natural character and influence, without permanent or significant habitation, which is protected and managed so as to preserve its natural condition.

Category II

Protected Area managed mainly for ecosystem conservation and recreation (example National Park)

Natural area of land and/or sea, designated to

1. protect the ecological integrity of one or more ecosystems for this and future generations:
2. exclude exploitation or occupation inimical to the purposes of designation of the area: and
3. provide a foundation for spiritual, scientific, educational, recreational and visitor opportunities, all of which must be environmentally and culturally compatible.

Category III

Protected Area managed for conservation of specific natural features (example Natural Monument)

Area containing one or more specific natural or natural/cultural feature which is of outstanding value because of its inherent rarity, representative or aesthetic qualities or cultural significance.

Category IV

Protected Area managed mainly for conservation through management intervention (example Habitat/Species Management Area).

Area of land and/or sea subject to active intervention for management purposes so as to ensure the maintenance of habitats and/or to meet the requirements of specific species.

Category V

Protected Areas managed mainly for landscape/seascape conservation and recreation (example Protected Landscape/Seascape).

Area of land, with coast and seas as appropriate, where the interaction of people and nature over time has produced an area of distinct character with significant aesthetic, cultural and/or ecological value, and often with high biological diversity. Safeguarding the integrity of this traditional interaction is vital to the protection, maintenance and evolution of such an area.

Category VI

Protected Area managed mainly for the sustainable use of natural ecosystems (example Managed Resource Protected Areas).

Area containing predominantly unmodified natural systems, managed to ensure long term protection and maintenance of biological diversity, while providing at the same time a sustainable flow of natural products and services to meet community needs.