Local Biodiversity Action Plans


What are LBAPs?

Since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 all County Councils in the UK have had a remit to write and implement a Local Biodiversity Action Plan. This has involved local wildlife and conservation groups, including Butterfly Conservation, drawing up lists of the species of plants and animals, plus their special habitats, in each county and highlighting those which are threatened or endangered. Further information on the status of each North Wales County LBAP can be found on their websites; just click on one of the following links;

Conwy LBAP
Snowdonia National Park Website

Anglesey LBAP1

 Anglesey LBAP2

Anglesey LBAP Habitat Action Plans and Species Action Plans

Flintshire LBAP                                               
Denbighshire LBAP

Gwynnedd LBAP

Wrexham LBAP

Powys LBAP (English)

Powys LBAP (Welsh)

(We try here to give direct links into the LBAP section of these County Council websites; however, the Councils are prone to keep changing the addresses of these pages without notice - if you can't get through from these links use the formula; www.countycouncilname.gov.uk and then search for Biodiversity, Lifelong Learning, Leisure, Countryside or similar category - searching for LBAP unfortunately rarely finds it! )

Butterfly and Moth SAPs

		Within the LBAPs, Species Action Plans (SAPs) are written for all those species that are most threatened in each county. To see the current SAPs on butterflies and moths for North Wales click on the website for the county you want above.The link will take you direct to the LBAP section where you can download any of the SAPs. Some of these documents are still in preparation and will be added to the websites as they are published.

Implementing the LBAPs

Just having the LBAP documents will not necessarily mean that rare species are saved. People need to make sure the actions recommended in the documents are carried out and constantly monitored and updated. To this end each County Council has a Biodiversity and a Conservation officer who help to write and monitor the progress of the LBAPs.The Countryside Council for Wales have Conservation Officers who also monitor and fund some of the smaller conservation organisations' work on LBAP implementation. Butterfly Conservation also has paid members of staff (funded by CCW) whose job it is to help volunteers compile data and give advice to landowners on implementing the LBAPs. Russel Hobson is the Butterfly Conservation officer for LBAPs in Wales. He can be contacted on; rhobson.bcw@btconnect.com or telephone; 0870 7706153

It is hoped that eventually all planners will have to consult the LBAP for their areas before granting planning permission for any building or road developments.

Butterfly Conservation's National Action Plan for Wales

This was the first of Butterfly Conservation's National Action Plans (NAP) for butterflies in the UK. This is separate from the County Councils' Action Plans. Published in 1998, it details all the most threatened species of butterflies and moths in Wales and where their key habitats should be protected. This document forms the basis for all subsequent work on monitoring populations and advice given to the County Councils in the compiling of the LBAPs. For a copy of the NAP and SAPs see the national website; www.butterfly-conservation.org
		Butterfly Conservation National Action Plan for Wales.