According to a recent report by Robin Ilves on the Estonian Public Broadcasting English language site, the Estonian government has announced plans for a nationwide scheme for nature conservation and protection.
The new plan, to be carried out by the Ministry of the Environment, appropriately enough, spans until 2020, the report said.
Estimated at a cost of 582.2 million Euros, the scheme aims to educate the public about nature conservation and the natural environment, including environmentally-friendly nature tourism, preservation work and financial incentives for creating conservation areas, the report continued.
Estonians value their natural environment; the country boasts several unspoilt national parks and vast areas of bog land hosting a plethora of species, as well as approximately half the country being covered by forest. As noted on this blog the quality of bathing water in freshwater rivers and lakes is amongst the best in Europe.
Thus it comes as no surprise that conservation would be on the agenda; even during the Soviet era there were environmental protests against the proposed strip mining of phosphorus (which thankfully never came to fruition).
However such efforts at conservation hitherto have largely been conducted on a regional or ad hoc basis – this is the first comprehensive national plan of its kind.
The original article is here.
Andrew Whyte
Tallinn Property by Goodson & Red
