How well are we protecting freshwater ecosystems and how strong are anthropogenic changes affecting surface water in a given area? Human pressures are constantly increasing and it is important to monitor the consequences of the associated changes on the environment, in particular inside and around protected areas, to ensure that natural ecosystems and their associated species and ecosystem functions (e.g. goods and services) are preserved. By comparing surface water maps overtime at the country and protected area level, changes in water regimes can be identified.

Indicator unit: Areas of inland permanent and seasonal surface water and their changes over time (1984 - 2018) are expressed in km2 and percentages. The following statistics are computed for each protected area, each country and each terrestrial ecoregion and are provided, together with associated maps, for each terrestrial and coastal protected area of size ≥ 1 km2  and each country :

• Net change (km2 ) of permanent surface water (1984 - 2020)
• Net change (km2 ) of seasonal inland water (1984 - 2020)
• Net change (km2 ) of protected permanent surface water (1984 - 2020)
• Net change (km2 ) of protected seasonal inland water (1984 - 2020)

We further provide maps of water occurrence, water occurrence change intensity and water transitions. Area of interest Surfaces of inland surface water and change statistics have been computed at the country level, terrestrial ecoregion level and for all protected areas.

Area of interest: Surfaces of inland surface water and change statistics have been computed at the country level and for all protected areas.

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Data Uploaded by Luca Battistella using the Digital Observatory for Protected Areas Services (2022)