A framework for assessing the environmental effectiveness of management at the scale of a Natura 2000 site

Assessing the effectiveness of protected area network policies meets two objectives: measuring changes in biodiversity state relative to the objectives set, and providing managers with tools to guide their actions. For Natura 2000 network, few studies link conservation status to the effectiveness of the network, particularly at site-level. This article proposes an operationalisation at the site-level of the "Strategic Environmental Management Analysis" (SEMA), concern-focused evaluation framework, based on an emblematic case study of French Special Areas of Conservation, maintenance of open environments. Although methods for evaluating N2000 sites exist, they do not sufficiently explain the strategic importance of prioritising biodiversity issues to be targeted, and the actions to be taken accordingly inside and outside the site, as the SEMA framework allows. This article addresses this gap by providing managers with the means to assess whether their measures improve the conservation status of habitats and species targeted by Natura 2000.