There are a number of key laws in the UK that protect wildlife and habitats. Basic information on each Act is included below, along with a link to the full text of the Act.
The Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981
View the full text of the Act here.
The Act makes it an offence (with exception to species listed in Schedule 2) to intentionally kill, injure, or take any wild bird or their eggs or nests. Special penalties are available for offences related to birds listed on Schedule 1, for which there are additional offences of disturbing these birds at their nests, or their dependent young.
More information on the protection of wild birds can be found on the Joint Nature Conservancy Committee website.
The Act makes it an offence (subject to exceptions) to intentionally kill, injure, or take, possess, or trade in any wild animal listed in Schedule 5 and prohibits interference with places used for shelter or protection, or intentionally disturbing animals occupying such places. The Act also prohibits certain methods of killing, injuring, or taking wild animals.
List of wild animals (other than birds) protected on Schedule 5 of the Act.
More information on the protection of wild animals can be found on the Joint Nature Conservancy Committee website.
The Act makes it an offence (subject to exceptions) to pick, uproot, trade in, or possess (for the purposes of trade) any wild plant listed in Schedule 8, and prohibits the unauthorised intentional uprooting of such plants.
List of wild plants protected under Schedule 8 of the Act.
The Protection of Badgers Act 1992
In Great Britain, legislation prohibits the taking, injuring, selling, possessing or killing of badgers and it is an offence to ill-treat any badger, damage, destroy, disturb or cause a dog to enter a badger sett. This protection extends to the area immediately around the sett and all setts are assumed to be actively used by badgers unless it can be conclusively proved they are not.
View the full text of the Act here.
The Countryside and Rights of Way Act (CRoW)2000
View the full text of the Act here.
There are several provisions within this act that strengthen the Wildlife & Countryside Act.
Schedule 9 of the Act changes the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, amending SSSI notification procedures and providing increased powers for the protection and management of SSSIs. The provisions extend powers for entering into management agreements, place a duty on public bodies to further the conservation and enhancement of SSSIs, and increase penalties on conviction where the provision are breached, with a new offence whereby third parties can be convicted for damaging SSSIs. It also introduces appeal processes with regards to the notification, management and protection of SSSIs.
Schedule 12 of the Act amends the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, strengthening the legal protection for threatened species. The provisions make certain offences 'arrestable', create a new offence of reckless disturbance, confer greater powers to police and wildlife inspectors for entering premises and obtaining wildlife tissue samples for DNA analysis, and enable heavier penalties on conviction of wildlife offences.
The Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 2006
Rather than protecting wildlife directly, Section 40 of the NERC places a duty on public bodies to have regard to the protection of biodiversity. Section 42 of this Act places a duty on the National Assembly for Wales to publish a lsit of the species and habitats of principle importance in Wales. All local authorities must have particular regard to this list when carrying out it's functions, including determining planning applications.
View the full text of the Act here.