Greece

Greece consists of a mountainous peninsula mainland with a large number of islands. It has a terrestrial area of close to 132,000km² and a marine area close to 48,800km² bordered by 4 other countries. The highest point is Mount Olympus at 2,917m. Greece has a population of 10.4 million people and a population density of 79.1 people per km².

of land covered

by protected areas

of marine waters

covered by protected areas

species protected

under EU law

habitats protected

under EU law

Protected areas in Greece cover a total of km² on land and km² at sea.

Percentage of area covered by protected areas

Currently, of terrestrial area of Greece is designated as protected areas, which is significantly above the EU value of 26.4%. The EU Biodiversity Strategy has set a target of reaching 30% protected area coverage at the EU level by 2030. With a coverage of in its marine waters, Greece surpasses the EU value of 12.1%.

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Number of protected areas

Greece has a total of protected areas in Greece, comprising sites designated under national laws and recognized as Natura 2000 sites. These Natura 2000 sites are designated under the Birds Directive, encompassing Special Protection Areas, and the Habitats Directive, encompassing Sites of Community Importance. Many sites are designated under both Directives.

number of protected areas

protected areas designated

under national laws

Designated sites

in the Natura 2000 network

Distribution of protected areas between national designations and Natura 2000

In Greece, almost half of the protected areas in the terrestrial environment are designated exclusively as Natura 2000 sites, with covered by areas where these overlap with national designations. Additionally, is covered by nationally designated areas only. The marine protected areas network in Greece largely consists of Natura 2000 sites, either designated solely or overlapping with nationally designated sites, with a very small portion covered by nationally designated areas only.

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Spatial distribution of protected areas network

Protected areas designated under national laws

Designated sites in the Natura 2000 network

Size distribution of protected areas network

About half of terrestrial protected areas in Greece are quite large in size – 10-100km², with small (smaller than 1km²) protected areas representing only about 8% of the terrestrial network – a figure that is significantly lower than the EU average. In the marine waters of Greece, larger protected areas also represent the majority of the network with 53% of them being 100-1,000km² and about 6% larger than 1,000km².

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Natura 2000 sites

Natura 2000 sites in Greece cover species and habitats from the nature directives. The number of species and habitats protected in each site varies depending on the location of the site, the biodiversity in the region, the designation being used, and the features the site is being created to protect.

Species protected in Greece under EU law fall under the Habitats and Birds Directives. Greece hosts protected under the Habitats Directive, which is approximately 21% of the total of the Habitats Directive’s species and protected birds, which is approximately 69% of the species protected under the Birds Directive.

species protected under EU law

species under the Habitats Directive

species under the Birds Directive

Conservation Status of species: Habitats Directive

In Greece, of species assessments indicate a good conservation status, while the EU average corresponds to 27.5%. The proportion of assessments indicating bad conservation status is reaching , compared to the EU average of 20.6%.

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Protected species composition by taxonomic group

In Greece, the distribution of protected species across taxonomic groups highlights the prominence of birds, comprising the largest proportion at 51.7%. They are followed by fishes, accounting for 10.4% of protected species, and vascular plants, representing 10.1%.

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Conservation Status by Taxa

In Greece, the assessment of species groups reveals that amphibians have the highest proportion of species with a good conservation status, standing at 76.4%. Following closely behind are reptiles, with 74.5% of species in good conservation status. On the other hand, non-vascular plants exhibit the highest percentage of species with a bad conservation status, reaching 100%.

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Habitats protected in Greece under EU law fall under the Habitats Directive. Greece hosts habitat types, which is approximately 38.2% of the total of habitat types protected by the Habitats Directive.

habitats protected under EU law in Greece

Conservation status of habitats

In Greece 48.3% of habitats assessments indicate a good conservation status which is considerably above the EU average of 14.7%. The proportion of assessments indicating a bad conservation status, amounting to 5.6%, is largely below the EU average of 35.8%.

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Protected habitat composition by group

In Greece the group of protected habitats with the largest number consists of forests, accounting for 31.4% of the total. Coastal and salt-tolerant habitats encompass 16.8% of the protected habitats.

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Conservation status by group

In Greece the assessment of habitat groups reveals that sclerophyllous scrub have the highest proportion of good conservation status, standing at 85.7%. Following behind are rocky habitats, with 83.3% of habitat types in good conservation status. On the other hand, sclerophyllous scrub exhibit the highest percentage of habitat types with a bad conservation status, reaching 14.2%, while coastal habitats have a proportion of habitat types in bad conservation status at 13.3%.

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Greece is predominantly characterised by three main types of ecosystems: Forest ecosystems, which cover 42% of the country, followed by Agroecosystems occupying 36.83% of the land area, andHeathlands accounting for 16.5%. However, Greece has relatively smaller proportions of urban areas (3.7%), rivers and lakes (0.8%), and wetland ecosystems (0.2%).

In terms of the protected area network, forests constitute the largest portion, covering 49.2% of the protected areas. Agroecosystems make up 29% of the protected areas, reflecting the importance of conserving and managing agricultural landscapes for biodiversity. Heathlands contribute to 17.1% of the protected areas, while rivers and lakes represent 1.7%, and urban areas comprise 1.6%. Wetlands account for 0.4% of the protected areas.

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