An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is an area of countryside with significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government. Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... Motto: (Welsh for Wales forever) Anthem: Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau Capital Cardiff Largest city Cardiff Official language(s) Welsh, English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Rhodri Morgan AM Unification    - by Gruffudd ap Llywelyn 1056  Area    - Total 20,779... Motto: [citation needed] (French for God and my right)2 Anthem: UK: God Save the Queen Regional: (de facto) Londonderry Air Capital Belfast Largest city Belfast Official language(s) English (de facto), Irish, Ulster Scots 3, NI Sign Language Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair... The Countryside Agency in England is a statutory body with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. ... The agencies responsible for the government of the United Kingdom consist of a number of ministerial departments (usually headed by a Secretary of State) and non-ministerial departments headed by senior civil servants. ...

The primary purpose of the AONB designation is to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the landscape, with two secondary aims: meeting the need for quiet enjoyment of the countryside and having regard for the interests of those who live and work there. To achieve these aims, AONBs rely on planning controls and practical countryside management. Town and Country Planning is the system by which the British government seeks to maintain a balance between economic development and environmental quality in England. ...

AONBs may be compared to the national parks of England and Wales. AONBs are created under the same legislation as the national parks, the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. Unlike AONBs, national parks have their own authorities, have special legal powers to prevent unsympathetic development, and are well known to many inhabitants of England and Wales. By contrast, there are very limited statutory duties imposed on local authorities within an AONB and there is evidence to indicate many residents in such areas may be unaware of the status. However, further regulation and protection of AONBs was added by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, and the Government has recently said that it accepts that AONBs and national parks should have equal status when it comes to planning consent and other sensitive issues. The Brecon Beacons National Park, looking from the highest point of Pen Y Fan (886 m/2907 feet) to Corn Du (873 m/2864 feet). ... Brecon Beacons National Park, Wales, UK A national park is a reserve of land, usually declared and owned by a national government, protected from most human development and pollution. ... The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 is the UK Act of Parliament which created the Countryside Commission (which later became the Countryside Agency), provided the framework for the creation of national parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England and Wales, and also addressed public... The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 is a UK act of parliament which came into force on November 30, 2000. ...

There are 36 AONBs in England, four in Wales, and one (Wye Valley) that has parts in both England and Wales. The most recent one to be set up was the Tamar Valley AONB in 1994. AONBs vary greatly in terms of size, type and use of land, whether they are partly or wholly open to the public. Some local councils have AONB officers and other dedicated staff; others do not. The smallest AONB is the Isles of Scilly (1976), 16 km², and the largest AONB is the Cotswolds (1966), 2,038 km². The AONBs of England and Wales together cover around 18% of the countryside in the two countries. Tintern Abbey in the Wye Valley, viewed from the Devils Pulpit near Tidenham The Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is an internationally important protected landscape area straddling the border between England and Wales. ... The Calstock Viaduct crossing the River Tamar. ... The Isles of Scilly (Cornish: Ynysek Syllan) form an archipelago of islands off the southwesternmost tip of England. ... Square kilometre (US spelling: Square kilometer), symbol km², is an SI unit of surface area. ... The Cotswolds is the name given to a range of hills in central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, a hilly area reaching over 300 m or 1000 feet. ...

There are growing concerns among environmental and countryside groups that AONB status is increasingly under threat from development. The Campaign to Protect Rural England said in July 2006 that many AONBs were under greater threat that ever before. Three particular sites were cited: the Dorset AONB threatened by a road plan, the threat of a football stadium in the Sussex Downs AONB, and, larger than any other, a £1 billion plan by Imperial College to build thousands of houses and offices on hundreds of acres of AONB land on the Kent Downs at Wye (covered in detail at save-wye.org). Imperial College have now withdrawn their plans for development, seemingly to the disappointment of both Ashford Borough and Kent County councils (September 2006). Royal School of Mines Entrance Imperial College London is a college of the University of London which focuses on science and technology, and is located in South Kensington in London. ... Wye College Wye is an historic village in Kent, England, located some 12 miles from Canterbury. ...

Scotland

The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 does not cover Scotland, instead Scotland has National Scenic Areas but there are significant differences. The Scottish Parliament passed the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 creating two National parks of Scotland for Scotland. National Scenic Areas are designated and promoted by Scottish Natural Heritage The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 is the UK Act of Parliament which created the Countryside Commission (which later became the Countryside Agency), provided the framework for the creation of national parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England and Wales, and also addressed public... Motto: (Latin for No one provokes me with impunity)1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots 2 Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP Unification    - by Kenneth I... National Scenic Area is a conservation designation specifically for Scotland, administered by Scottish Natural Heritage. ... The Scottish Parliaments logo in English and Gaelic. ... There are currently two national parks of Scotland, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, created in 2002, and Cairngorms National Park, created in 2003. ... Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is a Scottish public body . ...

See also

• National Scenic Areas
• Conservation in the United Kingdom
• European Landscape Convention