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The indicator shows the share of designated terrestrial protected areas expressed as a share of the total land area. It includes areas protected by other effective area-based conservation measures. The EU and global targets aim for 30% protection.
There are over 130 areas in Iceland protected under 10 categories, largely reflecting the classification system of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Among these are Iceland’s three national parks and six areas of internationally important bird habitats listed under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.
Iceland’s total coverage of nature conservation on land was 20.675 km2 in 2024, which is about 20% of the terrestrial area. In 2000, it was 12.366 km2. The most significant step in nature conservation in recent years was the establishment of the Vatnajökull National Park in 2008, centred around Iceland’s largest glacier. The park is among the largest in Europe, at about half the size of Belgium. Other recent protection measures include a conservation effort, between 2018 and 2021, when over 25 natural sites were protected. Further protection proposals, for new national parks and areas under other conservation categories, are under consideration.
Iceland is not a part of the EU Natura 2000 network, but takes the goals of the Kunming–Montreal global biodiversity framework into account in its biodiversity and nature conservation policy, including the 30-by-30 target.