The UK is among the five countries on the continent with the worst record of losing green land to development, according to a recent cross-European investigation
A recent cross-European investigation has found that the UK is among the worst countries on the continent for losing green land to development.
Using high-resolution satellite imagery and AI to track land-use change between 2018 and 2023, researchers identified around 604 square kilometres of nature and farmland in the UK that had been replaced by buildings, roads or infrastructure.
That is an area roughly the size of the New Forest.
Across Europe, the study suggests that green space is being lost up to one-and-a-half times faster than previously estimated, with an area the size of Cyprus turning from green to grey in just five years. The analysis covered 30 countries – 96% of the European Economic Area’s 39-country area. Every country examined is losing natural and agricultural areas, but some fare worse than others. The five countries with the highest green losses were Turkey, with more than 1,800 sq km of nature and crop land lost between 2018 and 2023, Poland (more than 1,000 sq km), France (950 sq km), Germany (720 sq km) and the UK (604 sq km).
An area of 604 sq km represents approximately 0.25% of the total land area of the United Kingdom.
No safety in outstanding beauty
While 0.25% may appear marginal, the losses are not evenly distributed. Much of the land being converted falls within agricultural categories – including some of the country’s most productive farmland.
Unlike woodland, which can be replanted, or brownfield sites, which can be reused, high-grade arable land is finite. Once built over, it is lost for generations.
At a national level, the implications extend beyond landscape. The UK already imports around 45% of the food it consumes. Continuing to convert productive farmland to housing and infrastructure raises longer-term questions about domestic food resilience, particularly in a period marked by geopolitical instability, supply chain disruption and climate volatility.
For rural counties such as Dorset – where farming remains central to both economy and identity – the shift alters how the land works, not just how it looks.
Perhaps most striking is that landscapes designated for protection are not immune. The investigation found that around 12 square kilometres of development has taken place within National Landscapes – formerly known as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Around 53% of Dorset is designated as a National Landscape, making it one of the most protected rural counties in England. At the same time, around 77% of the county is farmed, shaping not only its appearance but its economy and identity.
Resisting urban sprawl
Population change forms part of the backdrop. Dorset’s population grew by around 4% between 2011 and 2021, well below the national average. Further growth is expected, largely driven by inward migration. At the same time, the county is ageing rapidly, with over-65s making up an increasing share of the population.
Jeremy Hughes, chairman of Dorset CPRE, says that while rural economies need to thrive, development should not come at the expense of the countryside:
‘There are many brownfield sites where new housing should be prioritised. The green belt around Bournemouth should also be protected. New housing should only take place where attention has been given to the infrastructure. All too often there is scant regard to the impact of increased traffic on small country lanes.
‘Dorset CPRE supports the control of development in the Green Belt. Its primary function is to ensure that urban sprawl is resisted and development is focused on previously-developed land in urban centres. But these sites are less attractive to developers due to the increased costs associated with their development.
‘There are a number of consented previously-developed sites within the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole conurbation, for example – including the site of the former Poole power station – which have the capacity to make a significant contribution to the current unmet need. However, these remain vacant, while precious farmland is released and developed in their stead.’
Cumulative impact
All across Dorset, the pressures described in the national data are already visible. Near Bridport, the Foundry Lea development will eventually deliver around 760 homes within the Dorset National Landscape, including the recently completed Hazelmead co-housing scheme. To the north of the county, proposals for around 275 homes in Pimperne, close to the Cranborne Chase National Landscape, have drawn strong local objection. Further east, Dorchester’s northern expansion continues to grow, while in north Dorset, Gillingham has seen major development spread southwards towards the Stour valley. Nearby Shaftesbury has also expanded significantly in recent years, with new housing extending out from the edges of the town.
Each of these developments is substantial in its own right. But the satellite images suggest the bigger story lies in their cumulative effect – fields becoming building sites; tracks becoming access roads; villages expanding incrementally. Over time, the familiar Dorset patchwork of farmland and hedges begins to shift.
Anne Rickard, mayor of Bridport Town Council, says local people are increasingly concerned about what was being built: ‘Residents have been clear about what we need, but that doesn’t match what developers choose to deliver,’ she says.
‘It is disappointing for us. From the beginning, residents have been craving what we want and need, rather than what the developers want to build. We have been screaming out for low-cost, climate-friendly housing for our younger people, working people – but the building companies are constantly building us the contrary. None of it makes sense to me.
‘It is inevitable that there would be some loss of green land all over the country, not just in Dorset. However, the loss of that green land would be more welcome if it was used to meet real needs rather than just fill the pockets of developers.
‘It would also feel more acceptable if all new builds were energy efficient in every respect, using non-fossil fuels – to ‘passivhaus’ standards – and NOT on a flood plain.’
Don’t jettison community
North Dorset councillor James Vitali says rural areas are facing ever-increasing development pressure.
‘In my experience, Dorset residents recognise that we need to deliver new homes, and many of our communities have already stepped up to help meet this national challenge. What they resent, however, is that rural areas like Dorset are having to double the output of new homes, while housebuilding in cities like London – where demand for housing is highest – is at record lows.
‘And rightly, they object to the idea that the character of existing communities should be jettisoned in favour of whatever planning application can produce the greatest volume of housing on a given site.
‘The communities I represent would love to have a say on how they might grow organically and durably. Unfortunately, by cutting funding for neighbourhood planning, the government has shrunk its opportunity to do so.’
Is it one application at a time?
The countryside, however, is not only valued for its appearance: it is working land. Across England, the loss of ‘best and most versatile’ agricultural land – the highest quality farmland – has accelerated sharply over the past decade. Around 300,000 homes have already been built on prime farmland, and food production in the UK is projected to fall by as much as one-third (32%) by 2050 due to competing land-use demands and stalled productivity growth, according to a study by the Science for Sustainable Agriculture in 2025.
Up to 23% of current farmland (approx. 3.96 million hectares) could be lost over the next 25 years due to housing, renewable energy projects (such as solar farms), tree planting and carbon offsetting.
For rural counties like Dorset, where agriculture remains central to both landscape and livelihood, those figures carry particular significance. Rural residents know that the countryside never remains unchanged, and no one wishes to live in a museum. There is a clear need for the right type of new housing. This new data offers a different perspective on how that change is happening.
The satellite images do not argue for or against development. They simply record it.
The question for policymakers is whether the pattern they reveal is intentional – or the cumulative result of decisions taken one application at a time.
Here in Dorset, where landscape and livelihood are closely intertwined, the issue is not whether change happens, but how much the land can absorb – and who should set that limit.
by Laura Hitchcock
