Navigating the feature assessments

Layout of feature assessments

1. A map – this shows in which PDNP National Character Areas the feature is typically found
2. ‘Overall vulnerability rating’ – this quick-glance section gives the headline vulnerability result (Very Low, Low, Moderate, High or Very High) and is a combination of the ratings for potential impacts of climate change and adaptive capacity (6 and 7 below)
3. ‘Feature description’ – this gives a full description of what we assessed
4. ‘How vulnerable is/are…’ – this discusses and summarises the overall vulnerability ratings (Very Low, Low, Moderate, High or Very High) for potential impacts and adaptive capacity. See the methodology section for more info.
5. ‘Current condition’ – this summarises what is currently known about the feature’s current condition, including climate change impacts to date and non-climate related factors
6. ‘What are the potential impacts of climate change?’ – this gives a rating for potential impacts (Very Low, Low, Moderate, High or Very High) and discusses a feature’s exposure to climate change as well as the possible impacts of climate change on the feature, starting with the most sensitive categories first
7. ‘What is the adaptive capacity of…?’ – this gives a rating for adaptive capacity (Very Low, Low, Moderate, High or Very High) and discusses the rationale for the rating
8. ‘Key recommendations for adaptation’ – this gives brief recommendations of key adaptations that could limit the impacts of climate change on the feature. These are simply possible actions to consider, not commitments made by PDNPA or its partners.

Referencing

The sources we used when researching the vulnerability of each feature are listed in the bibliography of the document. The bibliography is organised by theme and by feature, to make linking statements made about a feature to their sources easier. Each feature assessment is linked to the relevant section of the bibliography.

Certainty

Certainty about the accuracy of statements made within the assessment is shown through coding within the text. Symbols Data Certainty: Low, Data Certainty: Moderate, Data Certainty: High and Data Certainty: Very high are used to signify low, medium, high or very high confidence in the preceding sentence or paragraph. Certainty shows the confidence in the sources of information gathered. The more higher-quality sources available and the better the agreement between them, the higher the certainty attached to a statement. For example, we assigned a Data Certainty: Low low certainty to a statement only supported by individual expert opinion and no academic research, whereas we assigned a Data Certainty: Very high very high certainty to a statement supported by multiple pieces of concurring academic research. Certainty can be distinct from likelihood, and this is explained in more detail in the ‘Method’ section of this document.