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Appendix 7 - SINCs
Selection Criteria for Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINCs) in Portsmouth
1. Neutral, acid or calcareous grassland
1.1 Agriculturally unimproved grasslands and grasslands that have developed without herbicides or fertilisers and are composed of a mixed assemblage of indigenous species in essentially semi-natural communities.
1.2 Semi-improved grasslands which retain a significant element of unimproved grassland.
1.3 Grasslands that have been degraded through inappropriate management but which retain sufficient elements of relic grassland to enable recovery.
2. Coastal habitats
2.1. Semi-natural coastal and estuarine habitats including saltmarsh, intertidal mudflats, shingle, brackish ponds, grazing marsh and maritime grasslands.
3. Wetlands
3.1 Areas of open freshwater (e.g. lakes, ponds, canals, rivers, streams and ditches) which support significant assemblages of floating, submerged or emergent plant species, invertebrates, birds or amphibians.
3.2 Fens, flushes, seepages, springs, inundation grasslands etc. that support a flora and fauna characteristic of unimproved and waterlogged (seasonal or permanent) conditions.
4. Species
4.1 Sites which support one or more of notable species1.
4.2 Sites which support an outstanding assemblage of notable species.
1 Notable species include Red Data Book Species, Nationally Scarce Species, species covered under Schedules 1,5 and 8 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, Annex 1 of the EC Bird Directive 79/409 and Annex 2 & 4 of the EC Directive 92/43/EEC 'The Habitats Directive', and those covered by the Bern, Bonn and Ramsar Conventions. Notable species will also include species that are considered locally significant due to regional scarcity.
5. Social Value
5.1 Sites which are especially valued by local people for their wildlife interest and hold a significant range of species or habitats, or have species that are of particular interest to local people.
5.2 Sites particularly valuable for environmental education purposes which are readily accessible and hold a significant range of species or habitats, or have species that are of particular educational interest.
