Commentary on Sections Part 2 – Conservation and Enhancement of Natural Features Notifications under the 1949 Act
344.A small number of SSSIs notified under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 (c.97) still exist. Paragraphs 8 to 10 allow for such notifications to continue in force, but in a more limited fashion than for SSSIs notified under the 1981 Act. 1949 Act sites were notified only to the planning authority for the area and, on a similar basis, they will have effect under the new Act only in relation to the general duty placed on public bodies by section 12.
345.SNH is empowered to revoke a 1949 Act site by the simple mechanism of giving notice to the interested parties. Any remaining 1949 Act sites can therefore, in due course, either be renotified by SNH under the new system or revoked.