The Improvement Programme for England’s Natura 2000 Sites (IPENS) is developing a suite of eleven Theme Plans. These Plans will address the issues that impact on, and affect the condition of, multiple Natura 2000 sites and which are difficult to resolve on a site-by-site basis. The project has identified the need for a Theme Plan on Diffuse Water Pollution.
As a high percentage of Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) and Special Protection Area (SPA) sites are affected by diffuse pollution it has been identified as a priority for the IPENS project to address. A technical workshop was held on 5 September 2013 to discuss the delivery mechanisms for diffuse pollution for Natura 2000 sites, the barriers to implementation of solutions on the ground and how these might be resolved.