Hungary

% of land is covered by protected areas.
species and habitats are protected under EU law

Hungary is a land locked country with a terrestrial area of close to 93 000 km² and bordered by 7 other countries. It consists largely of plain but also number of mountain ranges as well as Lake Balaton, the largest lake in central Europe. The highest point is Kékes at 1 014m. Hungary has a population of 9.7 million people and a population density of 107.1 people per km².

Protected areas

% of land

There are a total of protected areas in Hungary, Natura 2000 sites - Special Protection Areas (Birds Directive) and Sites of Community Importance (Habitat Directive) - as well as sites designated under national laws.

% of the network is protected only through national laws

% of the network consists solely of Natura 2000 sites

% consist of and overlap between the two.

The average size of protected areas in Europe is lower compared to other regions of the world. This largely reflects the high degree of fragmentation of the land in Europe due to urbanisation, infrastructure and general intensification of land use. At a EU level 50% of protected areas have an area of less than 1 km². The 10 largest marine sites account for 68% of the marine area, while the 10 largest land sites account for 41% of the land area covered by protected areas

Size distribution of Hungary's land protected areas network

Natura 2000 sites in Hungary 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. For sites there is only 1 feature being protected with sites having more than 20 features.

Protected species

Species protected in Hungary under EU law are protected under the Habitats Directive and under the Birds Directive. The Habitats Directive has a total of 2 500 species on its list, the Birds Directive has a total of 500 species of wild birds protected.

species protected under EU law in Hungary

species are unique to Hungary

species under the Habitats Directive

species under the Birds Directive

Conservation status: Habitats Directive

% of species are considered to be Good

% of species are considered to be Poor

% of species are considered to be Bad

% of species are considered to be Unknown

Conservation Status by Taxa

Protected species composition by Taxa

Protected habitats

Habitats protected in Hungary under EU law are protected under the Habitats Directive. The Habitats Directive has a total of 233 habitats on its list.

habitats protected under EU law in Hungary.

Conservation status: Habitats Directive

% of habitats are considered to be Good

% of habitats are considered to be Poor

% of habitats are considered to be Bad

% of habitats are considered to be Unknown

Conservation Status by Group

Habitat composition by Group

Ecosystems

Policy

MAES in Hungary:

A detailed national habitat mapping took place in Hungary between 2003 and 2006 which can be considered as a preliminary study for MAES-HU. Quality of natural and semi-natural habitats (ecosystem state) were also assessed and mapped.

In the framework of the Environment and Energy Efficiency Operational Program for 2014-2020 the "Strategic Assessments supporting the long term conservation of natural values of community interest as well as the national implementation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020” project has been launched, consisting of four main elements: Natura, Green Infrastructure, Landscape characteristics and Ecosystem services. The "Ecosystem services” element includes the mapping and assessment of ecosystems and their services, as required in Action 5 of the Biodiversity Strategy 2020, and is also referred to as MAES-HU. The project’s beneficiary is the Ministry of Agriculture (later MA, responsible governmental body for Nature Conservation), along with its partners from academic sector. The management team was set up at the Nature Conservation Department MA in August 2015. The total budget is: HUF 1,07 billion (EUR 3,45 million) (85% ERDF + 15% national funding). The project consortium includes the following institutes and organisations: Centre for Ecological Research; Lechner Non-profit Ltd.; Institute for Soil Sciences and Agricultural Chemistry, Centre for Agricultural Research; and the Research Institute of Agricultural Economics.

Green infrastructure in Hungary:

The primary responsibility for environmental issues and for the implementation of EU environmental legislation is delegated to the Ministry of Agriculture. Within the Ministry, the State Secretariat for Environmental Affairs, Agrarian Development and Hungaricums (specific national products) is the central governing body for environmental protection and nature conservation. The task of the State Secretariat is the promotion of sustainable development, the preservation of air and soil quality, and the protection of natural assets. The following legislative frameworks, policies and initiatives are most relevant for GI.

National Biodiversity strategy for Hungary:

To report on progress to the EU 2020 biodiversity strategy, the European Commission extracted relevant information from the EU Member States’ 5^th national reports to the CBD. Of the 5 countries which had not finalized their national reports at the time of the synthesis (26^th of August 2015), Greece, Malta, Portugal and Lithuania provided information to be included in the synthesis.