02 October 20
October 2020 update of the WDPA
The total number of protected area records in the October 2020 release of the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is 267,387 comprising 246,308 polygons and 21,079 points, covering 245 countries and territories.
October 2020 also sees another release of the World Database on other effective area-based conservation measures (WD-OECM). The WD-OECM can be combined with the WDPA to reveal how measures beyond protected areas contribute to conservation networks. It can be downloaded here.
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Highlights:
Canada: Tuvaijuittuq Marine Protected Area has been added, covering 319,411km2.
Iraq: in the first update since 2015, all of the data for Iraq has been verified as correct.
Qatar: the first update since 1993, with subsets of the data not updated since 1983. The update includes the addition of 10 protected areas including the Al Sheehaniya Scientific Research Park.
| Polygons | Points | ||||||||
| Country | Designation name | Added | Removed | Updated | Added | Removed | Updated | Point to polygon | Polygon to point |
| Bahamas | National designations | 0 | 0 | 53 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Qatar | National designations | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| UNESCO-MAB Biosphere Reserve | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Zimbabwe | National designations | 0 | 0 | 222 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | UNESCO-MAB Biosphere Reserve | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| National designations | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Haiti | National designations | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Grenada | Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Cartagena Special Protected Area | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| National designations | 1 | 1 | 46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Canada | National designations | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Comoros | National designations | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Iraq | National designations | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| World Heritage Site | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ghana | National designations | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Added: Number of features added in the WDPA (i.e. new WDPAIDs created)
Removed: Number of features removed from the WDPA (i.e. WDPAIDs removed from the database)
Updated: Modifications/updates of the geometry and/or attributes of existing features in the WDPA (i.e. features with existing WDPAIDs). Also covers features that have been verified as accurate (i.e. no changes need to be made).
Map of Protected Areas based on monthly update
Citation: UNEP-WCMC (2020). Protected areas map of the world, October 2020 Available at: www.protectedplanet.net
Summary of current data in preparation:
The data set status is defined as one of:
1) New dataset received, 2) Under review by UNEP-WCMC, 3) Under validation by data provider or 4) Final approval stages.
| Dataset | Status |
| Afghanistan | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Bhutan | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Bolivia | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Brazil | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Burkina Faso | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Canada | Under Review by UNEP-WCMC |
| Chile | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Colombia | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Costa Rica | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Dominican Republic | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Egypt | Final Approval Stages |
| Ethiopia | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Falkland Islands (Malvinas) | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Guatemala | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Hong Kong | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| India | Under Review by UNEP-WCMC |
| Kazakhstan | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Lao People's Democratic Republic | Final Approval Stages |
| Malaysia | Under Review by UNEP-WCMC |
| Mali | Final Approval Stages |
| Nicaragua | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Nigeria | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Peru | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Philippines | Under Review by UNEP-WCMC |
| Senegal | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Suriname | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Thailand | Under Review by UNEP-WCMC |
| Tunisia | Under Validation by Data Provider |
| Vanuatu | New Dataset Received |
| Venezuela | Under Validation by Data Provider |
Resources
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Tracking progress towards global targets for protected and conserved areas.