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Pentus-Rosimannus: establishment of protected areas must be thoroughly thought through

Yesterday, the government approved the draft resolution for the amendment of the Nature Conservation Act, making establishment of conservation units clearer and better thought through.

”The entire aspect of placing under protection must be public and understandable, and the steps weighed up and justified. It begins already with the proposal of forming a protected area, in which the need for establishing a protected area in that place has to be explained, and the borders of the area stated, as well as the presumable location of a rare or endangered natural value,” the Minister of the Environment Keit Pentus-Rosimannus said.
 
“The experts, in turn, would also have to assess the expediency of forming a protected area – what is the best way to protect the specific rare species and whether placing the entire area under protection would be the best way to do it,” the Minister of the Environment explained.

If the amendment will be accepted, more thorough requirements will start to be implemented on notification of placing under protection; the requirements for submitting objections will also be more specific and would have to be well-justified.
 
Another important change is that a specific time period will be determined on the length of time for which activities in the area may be restricted upon submitting a proposal to place an area under protection. “Currently, there are no final deadlines in the legislation on making a final decision on forming a protected area, thus also setting the limits. In such way, a situation may occur in which a person’s right to use his or her property is essentially restricted without a term. Now we propose to limit this period to 28 months,” Pentus-Rosimannus said.

The draft Act will also provide more clearly that a possibility to move around must be ensured on shore paths.  If the shore paths are ditches or fences have been erected to coastal meadows for herding animals, the owner must ensure crossing or passage. Erecting fences for animals that maintain coastal meadows is possible only under a written permission by a local government. If no such permission exists, erecting of a fence or digging a ditch is not allowed.

The draft Act also forbids additional feeding of game animals in national parks, protected areas and species protection sites, which is important in reducing the damage caused by game animals to the endangered species.
The draft Act is driven by the decision of the Supreme Court of the last year, in which it was found that the existing Act needs adjustment to ensure protection of fundamental rights under the constitution in case of placing an area under protection.