National Scenic Area is a conservation designation

Conservation designation

A conservation designation is a name and/or acronym which explains the status of an area of land in terms of conservation or protection.-United Kingdom:*Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty *Environmentally Sensitive Area*Local Nature Reserve...

 used in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, and currently administered by Scottish Natural Heritage

Scottish Natural Heritage

Scottish Natural Heritage is a Scottish public body. It is responsible for Scotland's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and scenic diversity. It advises the Scottish Government and acts as a government agent in the delivery of conservation designations, i.e...

. NSAs are defined as having outstanding scenic interest or unsurpassed attractiveness.

Overview

The primary purpose of the NSA designations is to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the landscape, in a similar way to AONBs.

Rest of the UK

The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949

National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949

The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which created the National Parks Commission which later became the Countryside Commission and then the Countryside Agency, which became Natural England when it merged with English Nature in...

 covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This act recognises Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in areas of countryside

Rural

Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...

 with significant landscape value in each of the three nations, that has been specially designated by their administrations.

See also

• Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
  Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
  An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...
  
  
• National parks of Scotland
  National parks of Scotland
  National parks of Scotland are managed areas of outstanding landscape where habitation and commercial activities are restricted. At present, Scotland has two national parks: Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, created in 2002, and the Cairngorms National Park, created in 2003...
  
  
• European Landscape Convention
  European Landscape Convention
  The European Landscape Convention, also known as the Florence Convention, was initiated by the Congress of Regional and Local Authorities of the Council of Europe...