This is a list of the

Sites of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

(SSSIs) in

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...

, a metropolitan county in

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

. In England the body responsible for designating SSSIs is

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

, which chooses a site because of its

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is '' flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. ...

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. ...

geological Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other E ...

or physiographical features. , there are 21 sites designated within this

Area of Search The following is a list of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) by area of search, in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are areas of conservation, consisting of protected areas, recognised for their biological or geological significance. In Northe ...

, of which 14 have been designated due to their biological interest, 5 due to their geological interest, and 2 for both biological and geological interest.

took over the role of designating and managing SSSIs from

English Nature English Nature was the United Kingdom government agency that promoted the conservation of wildlife, geology and wild places throughout England between 1990 and 2006. It was a non-departmental public body funded by the Department for Environmen ...

in October 2006 when it was formed from the amalgamation of English Nature, parts of the

Countryside Agency The Countryside Agency was a statutory body set up in England in 1999 with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. The agency was dissolved in 2006 and its functions dispersed among other bod ...

and the

Rural Development Service The Rural Development Service (RDS) was formerly part of the UK Government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). It ceased to exist on 1 October 2006 following the creation of Natural England. History The RDS was crea ...

. Natural England, like its predecessor, uses the 1974–1996 county system and as such the same approach is followed here, rather than splitting these sites between the

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

and

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county tow ...

lists. The data in the table is taken from English Nature's website in the form of citation sheets for each SSSI.''Natural England'' citation sheets for each SSSI. Retrieved on 2007-07-02. (

PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...

files). For other counties, see

List of SSSIs by Area of Search The following is a list of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) by area of search, in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are areas of conservation, consisting of protected areas, recognised for their biological or geological significance. In Norther ...

Sites

, - ,

Compstall Nature Reserve Etherow Country Park is situated at Compstall, England, between Marple Bridge and Romiley, in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester. It is a Local Nature Reserve and the starting point of the Goyt Way. It was one of Englan ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 12.8 , style="text-align:right;", 31.6 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1977 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Cotteril Clough Cotterill Clough is a nature reserve near Manchester Airport. It is managed by the Cheshire Wildlife Trust and lies within a larger Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The Cotterill Brook, which flows through the reserve, is a tributary ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 10.3 , style="text-align:right;", 25.5 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1951 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Dark Peak The Dark Peak is the higher and wilder part of the Peak District in England, mostly forming the northern section but also extending south into its eastern and western margins. It is mainly in Derbyshire but parts are in Staffordshire, Cheshire, ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 31,852.9 , style="text-align:right;", 78,708.4 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1951 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Dunham Park Dunham Massey is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The parish includes the villages of Sinderland Green, Dunham Woodhouses and Dunham Town, along with Dunham Massey Hall and Park, formerly ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 78.0 , style="text-align:right;", 192.7 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1965 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Gale Clough And Shooterslee Wood A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ).Highfield Moss Lowton is a suburban village within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is around from Leigh, south of Wigan and west of Manchester city centre. The settlement lies across the A580 East Lancashire Road. Wi ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 21.3 , style="text-align:right;", 52.6 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1986 , style="text-align:center;", , - , Hollinwood Branch Canal , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 3.3 , style="text-align:right;", 8.2 , style="text-align:center;", – , style="text-align:center;", 1986 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Huddersfield Narrow Canal The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin in Huddersfield, to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whi ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 18.4 , style="text-align:right;", 45.5 , style="text-align:center;", – , style="text-align:center;", 1988 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Ladcastle and Den Quarries Uppermill is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies on the River Tame in a valley amongst the South Pennines wit ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 2.5 , style="text-align:right;", 6.2 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1984 , style="text-align:center;", , - , Lowside Brickworks , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 1.4 , style="text-align:right;", 3.5 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1989 , style="text-align:center;", , - , Ludworth Intake , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 5.1 , style="text-align:right;", 12.7 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1998 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Nob End Nob End is the site of a former waste tip which is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest and Local Nature Reserve near Little Lever and Kearsley, in Greater Manchester, England. History Standing at the confluence of the River Irwell and Riv ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 8.8 , style="text-align:right;", 21.7 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1988 , style="text-align:center;", , - , Red Moss , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 47.2 , style="text-align:right;", 116.6 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1995 , style="text-align:center;", , - ,

Rochdale Canal The Rochdale Canal is in Northern England, between Manchester and Sowerby Bridge, part of the connected system of the canals of Great Britain. Its name refers to the town of Rochdale through which it passes. The Rochdale is a broad canal bec ...

, style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 25.6 , style="text-align:right;", 63.1 , style="text-align:center;", – , style="text-align:center;", 2000 , style="text-align:center;", , - , South Pennine Moors , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 20,938.1 , style="text-align:right;", 51,739.0 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1994 , style="text-align:center;", , - , Tonge River Section , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:right;", 0.7 , style="text-align:right;", 1.8 , style="text-align:center;", , style="text-align:center;", 1987 , style="text-align:center;",

Notes

:Data rounded to one decimal place. :Grid reference is based on the

British national grid reference system The Ordnance Survey National Grid reference system (OSGB) (also known as British National Grid (BNG)) is a system of geographic grid references used in Great Britain, distinct from latitude and longitude. The Ordnance Survey (OS) devised the ...

, also known as OSGB36, and is the system used by the

Ordnance Survey Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...

. :Link to maps using the ''Nature on the Map'' service provided by ''Natural England''. :The Gale Clough and Shooterslee Wood site extends into the county of

and so can be found on the list of SSSIs in Lancashire. :The Dark Peak site extends into three other counties and so can be found on lists of SSSIs in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. ...

and

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

. :The Ludworth Intake site extends into the county of

and so can be found on the list of SSSIs in Derbyshire. :The South Pennine Moors site extends into three other counties and so can be found on lists of SSSIs in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four co ...

and

References

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Sites of Special