Every constraint layer in EcoSentry is sourced directly from UK statutory bodies under Open Government Licence. This page documents each layer — its source, update frequency, and confidence level.
51
Total layers
4
Jurisdictions
2.3M+
Database records
OGL v3
Data licence
Important — indicative screening only
All EcoSentry outputs are indicative constraint screening tools. They do not constitute a statutory survey, professional ecological assessment, or planning determination. Results should always be verified against primary sources and supplemented by site-specific surveys carried out by qualified professionals. Confidence ratings reflect data coverage and resolution, not legal certainty.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
OGL v3
NatureScot
Statutory designation under the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004. Full polygon geometry.
Special Areas of Conservation (SAC)
OGL v3
NatureScot
Habitats Directive designation. Includes candidate SACs.
Special Protection Areas (SPA)
OGL v3
NatureScot
Birds Directive designation.
National Nature Reserves (NNR)
OGL v3
NatureScot
Statutory NNR boundaries.
Local Nature Reserves (LNR)
OGL v3
NatureScot
Local authority designated reserves.
Ancient Woodland Inventory (AWI)
OGL v3
NatureScot / Forestry Commission
Includes ASNW and PAWS categories. Not all areas surveyed at equal resolution.
Historic Environment Scotland Designations
OGL v3
Historic Environment Scotland (HES)
Scheduled monuments, listed buildings, conservation areas, gardens and designed landscapes, world heritage sites.
SEPA Flood Risk Zones
OGL v3
SEPA
Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009. Zones 1, 2 and 3.
National Scenic Areas (NSA)
OGL v3
NatureScot
40 designated NSAs. Equivalent to AONB in England.
Salmonid Protection Zones
OGL v3
NatureScot
Freshwater pearl mussel and salmon river protection zones.
Drinking Water Protected Areas (DWPA)
OGL v3
SEPA / Scottish Water
Water Framework Directive Article 7 protected areas.
WFD Water Bodies
OGL v3
SEPA
Rivers, lochs, transitional and coastal water bodies under the Water Framework Directive.
Peatland (NatureScot Survey)
OGL v3
NatureScot
202,146 survey polygons. Includes carbon class (1–6) and carbon_250 column used in Carbon Forecaster. 500m radius resolution. Not a substitute for site-level peat survey.
Peat Depth Survey Points
OGL v3
NatureScot
202,146 individual survey points. Red dots = deep peat ≥0.5m (Scottish Planning Policy threshold). Point data — interpolation between points may not reflect actual depth at any given location.
Wetlands
OGL v3
NatureScot
Wetland habitat polygons from NatureScot survey data.
Regulated Sites
OGL v3
SEPA
SEPA-regulated installations including waste facilities, abstraction licences, water discharge consents.
Protected Designations (SSSI, SAC, SPA, NNR, LNR, AONB, Ramsar, National Parks)
OGL v3
Natural England
8,290 records. Consolidated designations layer from Natural England open data.
Scheduled Monuments & Heritage
OGL v3
Historic England
19,928 records. Scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, registered battlefields.
Heritage (Listed Buildings, Conservation Areas, World Heritage)
OGL v3
Historic England
389,367 records. Full Historic England dataset including all listed building grades.
Priority Habitats & Ancient Woodland
OGL v3
Natural England
Priority Habitat Inventory and Ancient Woodland Inventory. Centroid used for audit queries; full polygon rendered via PMTiles.
BNG Habitats (Biodiversity Net Gain)
OGL v3
Natural England / DEFRA
5,950 records. Habitat condition and distinctiveness data for BNG metric calculations. Indicative pre-screening only — not a substitute for the statutory DEFRA biodiversity metric tool.
EA Water Bodies
OGL v3
Environment Agency
4,784 records. WFD classified water bodies.
Source Protection Zones (SPZ)
OGL v3
Environment Agency
4,686 records. Zones 1, 2 and 3 around drinking water sources.
Green Belt
OGL v3
DLUHC / Local Authorities
181 records. Compiled from local authority submissions. May not reflect the most recent local plan updates — always verify against the relevant local authority.
EA Flood Risk Zones
OGL v3
Environment Agency
Fetched live via EA WFS API for each query. Zones 2 and 3. No data stored by EcoSentry.
Protected Designations (SSSI, SAC, SPA, NNR, AONB, Ramsar, National Parks)
OGL v3
Natural Resources Wales (NRW)
Full NRW designations dataset.
Ancient Woodland Inventory
OGL v3
Natural Resources Wales (NRW)
NRW Ancient Woodland Inventory. Includes ancient semi-natural woodland and plantations on ancient woodland sites.
Flood Risk Zones
OGL v3
Natural Resources Wales (NRW)
Development Advice Maps (DAM) flood zones C1 and C2.
WFD Water Bodies
OGL v3
Natural Resources Wales (NRW)
Water Framework Directive classified water bodies.
Heritage Designations
OGL v3
Cadw
Scheduled monuments, listed buildings, conservation areas, registered parks and gardens, world heritage sites.
Peatland
OGL v3
Natural Resources Wales (NRW)
Peat depth and condition data from NRW survey.
Areas of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI)
OGL v3
NIEA
Equivalent to SSSI. Environment (Northern Ireland) Order 2002.
SAC, SPA, Ramsar, AONB
OGL v3
NIEA
International and national nature conservation designations.
Ancient Woodland
OGL v3
DAERA / NIEA
NI Ancient Woodland Inventory.
Peatland
OGL v3
DAERA
NI peatland extent and condition.
Fens, Grassland, Heathland
OGL v3
NIEA
Priority habitat types from NIEA survey data.
Marine Protected Areas (MPA)
OGL v3
NIEA
Marine Conservation Zones and other MPAs.
WFD Water Bodies
OGL v3
NIEA
Water Framework Directive classified water bodies.
Drinking Water Protected Areas (DWPA)
OGL v3
NIEA / NI Water
Article 7 WFD drinking water protected areas. DfI flood risk data is not available as open data in NI — disclosed in report limitations.
Full polygon geometry from a statutory source. Updated annually or more frequently. Covers the full jurisdiction. Suitable for initial constraint screening.
Survey-based data with known coverage gaps, lower update frequency, or point/centroid geometry rather than full polygon. Results should be treated as indicative and verified on site.
Compiled from multiple sources, may not reflect the most recent local plan or survey data. Always verify against the primary source before relying on results.
All data is published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. EcoSentry is not affiliated with any of the data providers listed above.