WDPCA: Panama Protected and Conserved Areas Geospatial Data

A source of geospatial boundaries and metadata for marine and terrestrial protected areas in Panama, managed by the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC). It integrates data from the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and the World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM) with monthly updates. The data serves as the official record for tracking international biodiversity targets and Sustainable Development Goals.

Use Cases

• Mapping protected area boundaries to identify biodiversity risks within project boundaries for environmental impact assessments
• Calculating the percentage of conserved land and water to track progress toward the 30% conservation target by 2030
• Integrating conservation polygons into decision support tools like the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT)

Strengths

• Official reporting source for UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework
• Available in four interoperable formats: GEOJSON, GEOPACKAGE, CSV, and GEOSERVICE
• Maintained by UNEP-WCMC in collaboration with national governments

Limitations

• Geographic scope is restricted to Panama
• Specific attribute schema is not detailed in the provided documentation
• Relies on reporting from various stakeholders which may have varying levels of precision

Provenance

Source

UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) and IUCN

Collection Method

Compiled from government reports, international secretariats, and conservation stakeholders

Freshness

Updated on a monthly basis as part of the Protected Planet Initiative.

Geography

Panama