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Benefits of the Birds Directive
Leisure opportunities are just one of the benefits provided by the protection that the Birds Directive has given our countryside
Together with the Habitats Directive, the Birds Directive
provides protection at a time when pressures on wildlife sites
continue to rise and there is increasing recognition of the
contribution of undeveloped places to human quality of
life.
Twenty-five years on, we applaud those that drafted the Birds
Directive for producing legislation that works in the broadest
public interest.
Birds contribute hugely to the quality of human life, be it
through bird song or just the simple pleasure of seeing a robin at
a garden bird table. But the conservation of birds, and the
habitats on which they depend, also contributes to our quality of
life in more tangible ways:
- Providing natural services: wetlands, for example, absorb water
and help prevent damaging floods; estuaries serve as nurseries for
commercial fisheries; saltmarsh creation can buffer the effect of
damaging waves, and so reduce expenditure on hard sea defence
works.
- Health benefits: the natural world provides inspiration and
relaxation, an antidote to progressively more stressful and
sedentary lifestyles.
- Leisure opportunities: for wildlife watching and quiet
enjoyment of the countryside.
- Support to local economies: attractive landscapes and important
wildlife sites attract visitors and generate much needed employment
and income from tourism; habitat management work provides a more
direct contribution in provision of goods and services, and local
employment. Natural landscapes, often protected through the Birds
Directive as Special Protection Areas, support ancillary industries
such as film-making. In south-west England, environment-related
economic activity contributes about 100,000 jobs and some £1.4
billion to the regional economy – around 5-10% of the region’s
gross domestic product.
- Education: Special Protection Areas provide an opportunity for
children to explore the wonder of nature and wild places. Without
such first hand experience, young people will not become
environmentally-aware.
Last modified: 02 April 2004