Great Crested Newt Risk Zones for North and West Yorkshire, 2021

Natural England's dataset categorizes areas in North and West Yorkshire by risk to great crested newt populations from development. It defines red, amber, green, and white zones based on population importance and habitat connectivity. The data is derived from multiple environmental sources including Ordnance Survey, the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, and the Freshwater Habitats Trust.

Use Cases

• Prioritizing conservation areas based on red zone designations for regionally important populations.
• Modeling habitat connectivity for species dispersal using amber zone classifications.
• Screening development proposals for ecological impact based on the four-tier risk zone system.
• Informing strategic planning decisions by identifying areas with sparsely distributed or absent populations (green and white zones).

Strengths

• Defines four distinct risk categories (red, amber, green, white) with clear ecological criteria.
• Integrates data from multiple authoritative sources including Natural England, Ordnance Survey, and the Freshwater Habitats Trust.
• Covers the specific geographies of North and West Yorkshire.

Limitations

• Row count and column-level documentation are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Freshness should be verified as the core attribution is from 2021, despite a platform update date in 2026.
• The description notes white zones are rare and used only when certain of no GCN presence, which may indicate data gaps.

Provenance

Source

Natural England, with contributions from Ordnance Survey, Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Freshwater Habitats Trust, and others.

Collection Method

Likely compiled from species monitoring, habitat surveys, and land cover mapping.

Time Range

Attribution statements reference data from 2007 to 2021.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-13 13:01:28.876391; core data attribution is 2021.

Geography

North and West Yorkshire, England.