# Environmentally sensitive area

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{{More citations needed|date=October 2023}}

An '''environmentally sensitive area''' ('''ESA''') is a type of designation for an [agricultural](/source/agricultural) area which needs special protection because of its [landscape](/source/landscape), [wildlife](/source/wildlife) or historical value.<ref>{{Cite web |last=England |first=Natural |date=2022-09-27 |title=Environmentally Sensitive Areas (England) |url=https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/a5b0ccc4-a144-4027-91fa-49084ff07da2/environmentally-sensitive-areas-england |access-date=2023-10-10 |website=www.data.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref> The scheme was introduced in 1987.  Originally it was administered by [Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food](/source/Ministry_of_Agriculture%2C_Fisheries_and_Food_(United_Kingdom)), then the [Rural Development Service](/source/Rural_Development_Service) for the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom) [Government](/source/Government)s [Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs](/source/Department_for_Environment%2C_Food_and_Rural_Affairs), and currently [Natural England](/source/Natural_England) following successive re-organisation of the departments. In 2005 the scheme was superseded by [Environmental Stewardship](/source/Environmental_Stewardship) and closed to new entrants. Existing agreements remain active until they expire, meaning the designation will remain active until 2014.

Farmers entered into a 10-year contract with the government and received an annual payment for the area that is part of the scheme. Farmers were expected to adopt [environmentally friendly](/source/environmentally_friendly) agricultural practices.

There are 22 ESAs in England:
*[Avon](/source/River_Avon%2C_Hampshire) Valley
*[Blackdown Hills](/source/Blackdown_Hills_National_Landscape)
*[Breckland](/source/Breckland)
*[Broads](/source/Norfolk_Broads)
*[River Clun](/source/River_Clun%2C_Shropshire)
*[Cotswold](/source/Cotswolds) Hills
*[Dartmoor](/source/Dartmoor)
*[Essex](/source/Essex%2C_England) Coast
*[Exmoor](/source/Exmoor)
*[Lake District](/source/Lake_District)
*[North Kent Marshes](/source/North_Kent_Marshes)
*North [Peak](/source/Peak_District)
*[Pennine](/source/Pinnines) [Dales](/source/Yorkshire_Dales)
*[Shropshire Hills](/source/Shropshire_Hills)
*[Somerset Levels and Moors](/source/Somerset_Levels)
*[South Downs](/source/South_Downs)
*South [Wessex](/source/Wessex) Downs
*South West [Peak](/source/Peak_District)
*[Suffolk](/source/Suffolk) River Valleys
*[Test](/source/River_Test) Valley
*Upper [Thames](/source/River_Thames) Tributaries
*[West Penwith](/source/West_Penwith)

There are 10 ESAs in Scotland
*[Breadalbane](/source/Breadalbane%2C_Scotland)
*[Loch Lomond](/source/Loch_Lomond)
*[Machair](/source/Machair) ([Western Isles](/source/Western_Isles))
*[Stewartry](/source/Stewartry)
*Central Borders (inc Whitlaw Eildon)
*Central Uplands
*Western Uplands
*[Cairngorm](/source/Cairngorms) Straths
*[Shetland Islands](/source/Shetland)
*[Argyll Islands](/source/Argyll_and_Bute)

==See also==
*[Countryside Stewardship Scheme](/source/Countryside_Stewardship_Scheme)
*[Environmental stewardship](/source/Environmental_stewardship)
*[Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty](/source/Area_of_Outstanding_Natural_Beauty) (AONB)
*[Site of Special Scientific Interest](/source/Site_of_Special_Scientific_Interest) (SSSI)
*[Special Area of Conservation](/source/Special_Area_of_Conservation) (SAC)
*[Special protection area](/source/Special_protection_area) (SPA)
*[Nitrate sensitive area](/source/Nitrate_sensitive_area) (NSA)

==References==
<references />

Category:Protected areas of the United Kingdom
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Environmentally sensitive area](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmentally_sensitive_area) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmentally_sensitive_area?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.