Sites of Biological Importance (SBI / LWS) in Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester Ecology Unit (GMEU) operates the SBI register for, and on behalf of, the ten Local Authorities that comprise Greater Manchester. This dataset contains all current SBI boundaries (based upon the 2020 review), including the name of each site and its defining features. SBIs are Greater Manchester's equivalent to Local Wildlife Sites (LWS). SBIs are non-statutory areas of substantive nature conservation importance within the county of Greater Manchester. The SBI system is designed to establish and highlight to planners, landowners and site managers where areas of high biodiversity interest occur so that appropriate decisions on planning applications, land use and land management can be made. Full SBI citations including site descriptions, statistics and grading information can be obtained from GMEU if required.