dataset · England
Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZ) 2021 Designations
This dataset identifies Nitrate Vulnerable Zones for implementation in 2021. The designations are made by the Secretary of State for the purposes of the Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2015 (England). This dataset supersedes the previous dataset ‘Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZ) 2017 – Combined (Final Designations)’. Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs) are areas designated as being at risk from agricultural nitrate pollution. Waters are defined within the Nitrates Directive and Nitrate Regula
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Licence: ["There are no public access constraints to this data. Use of this data is subject to the licence identified.", "There are no public access constraints to this data. Use of this data is subject to the
Evidence quality: 50
Listed in data.gov.uk public catalogue API on 2026-10-16; relevance/value screened (haiku).
Metadata checked: 2026-10-14T13:20:00.000Z
What's in it
- Data offered docs-verified
- Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ) designations for implementation in 2021
- Coverage docs-verified
- England
- Update frequency docs-verified
- As needed (no fixed schedule)
- Formats docs-verified
- SHP (zipped) · GPKG (zipped) · GeoJSON (zipped) · File Geodatabase (zipped)
- Access docs-verified
- Free and open; Open Government Licence v3.0; no public access constraints
Useful for
- Use cases llm-inferred
- Screen site and land-use proposals against NVZ boundaries for agricultural nitrate constraints · Overlay NVZ areas on catchment water quality baselines for diffuse pollution risk screening · Add NVZ context to GIS constraints mapping for planning and drainage strategy reports
- Audience llm-inferred
- environmental consultants · water quality specialists · GIS analysts · planners
Limitations
- Constraints llm-inferred
- England only; designations are made under the Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2015 (England) · Updates are as needed with no fixed schedule, so check the revision date before relying on it · Supersedes the 2017 combined NVZ dataset, so use this version for 2021 designations · Attribution statement required by the publisher
Evidence
- https://environment.data.gov.uk/api/file/download?fileDataSetId=3eea4ac1-7303-4c6a-b16f-510fd2ce997f&fileName=Nitrate_Vulnerable_Zones_NVZ_2021_Designations.gdb.zip
- https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/77ffd32c-13db-4d83-a1f8-044c5397bc34/nitrate-vulnerable-zones-nvz-2021-designations
Check upstream coverage, uncertainty and licence before use. Station observations are not forecasts or design levels.