Marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Marine protected areas was 46.8% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2013–2025
Source: Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring. Measured in % of territorial waters.
Analysis
The most recent figure for marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is 46.8%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
That represents a change of up 274.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 46.8% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5.7%, in 2013.
That places United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 8th out of 174 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 5.7% | — |
| 2014 | 16.5% | +189.5% |
| 2015 | 12.5% | -24.2% |
| 2016 | 21.6% | +72.8% |
| 2017 | 29.0% | +34.3% |
| 2018 | 28.9% | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 29.2% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 44.2% | +51.4% |
| 2021 | 44.1% | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 44.1% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 44.1% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 46.8% | +6.1% |
| 2025 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 20.5% | 5.7% | 29.2% | 7 |
| 2020s | 45.0% | 44.1% | 46.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
More climate change data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.7% (2100)
- Urban population 83.3% (2025)
- Urban population 57.90 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.4% (2025)
- Population, total 69.49 million (2025)
- Population growth 0.3% (2025)
- Annual Net Emissions/Removals 370.74 (2024)
- Temperature change with respect to a baseline climatology 1.49 (2024)
- Per capita CO₂ emissions vs. per capita energy use 4.53 tonnes per person (2024)
- Share of global cumulative CO₂ emissions including land-use change 2.9% (2024)
All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →
Frequently asked questions
- What is marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Marine protected areas in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 46.8% in 2025, according to Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring.
- What is the highest marine protected areas recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 46.8% in 2024.
- What is the lowest marine protected areas recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.7% in 2013.
- How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for marine protected areas?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 8th out of 174 countries with data for 2025.
- Is marine protected areas rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 274.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring, published as part of Marine protected areas (% of territorial waters). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Marine protected areas are areas of intertidal or subtidal terrain--and overlying water and associated flora and fauna and historical and cultural features--that have been reserved by law or other effective means to protect part or all of the enclosed environment.