10 July 2013: The European Environment Agency’s (EEA) land cover change assessment outlines the encroachment of roads, buildings and artificial surfaces for residences, services and recreation into European farmland and natural areas, from 2000 to 2006.

The assessment documents rapid land-use change in Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Portugal and Sweden. It notes a slowdown in the growth of roads and buildings compared with 1990 to 2000, but stresses that habitats are being carved into increasingly smaller fragments. The next land cover assessment is expected in 2014, covering the years of 2006 to 2012. [EEA Press Release] [Publication: Analysis of Changes in European Land Cover from 2000 to 2006]