Finnish-Russian Nature Conservation Seminar and Work Group Meeting in Finland, June 2002

"The Finnish-Russian Nature Conservation Cooperation Working Group has worked actively for seventeen years, starting in 1985. The group offers a forum for discussion and planning of nature protection activities also during these present unstable and confusing times. Human relations, friendship and the strong will to act for the benefit of nature without borders are the elements of true sustainable development,” said professor emeritus Rauno Ruuhijärvi at the seminar in Helsinki, 12.6.2002.

Nature conservation cooperation between the Soviet Union and Finland started back in the 1970s as one form of scientific-technical cooperation. Joint activities were undertaken by ministries, authorities, scientific institutes and universities of both countries. An official Finnish-Russian Working Group on Nature Conservation was established between the two countries in 1985. Since then, the Working Group has had a very important role in the nature protection of territories close to the Finnish-Russian border, even though Ministries, committees and regional administrative organs have changed several times, especially in Russia.

Public seminar on 12.6.2002 in Helsinki

The Finnish-Russian Working Group on Nature Conservation has arranged joint meetings, generally once a year, to discuss, develop and resolve issues of nature protection near the border region, and of common interest for both countries. Rauno Ruuhijärvi, professor emeritus of the University of Helsinki, has been the key figure in the bilateral cooperation from the start, and chaired the Finnish party of the working group, from its establishment in 1985, until 2002. The chairman of the Russian side has been Ljudmila Kuleshova, professor of the State Research Institute “VNIIPriroda”. In order to thank the long-term chairman Rauno Ruuhijärvi for his crucial role in promoting Finnish-Russian nature conservation, the Finnish Ministry of Environment arranged a public seminar on the 12th of June in Helsinki, followed by the working group meeting in Tammisaari the following day. The seminar provided the public and the media with a review of Finnish-Russian efforts in biodiversity conservation of East-Fennoscandia, and provided the opportunity to discuss problems and future plans. The seminar and meeting also provided the forum for introducing the new Finnish chairmen of the Working Group, Dr. Aimo Saano, Research Manager of Metsähallitus and Dr. Tapio Lindholm, Senior Scientist from the Finnish Environment Institute.

The seminar was opened and chaired by Pekka Kangas, General Manager of the Finnish Ministry of the Environment. He emphasized that the decisions on the use of the natural resources of Northern Europe are today considered to be international questions. More concern is being, and must continue to be, given to the conservation of biodiversity and sustainable principles of using natural resources, especially in forestry. Nongovernmental organizations both in Russia and Finland have been active in calling for the establishment of protected areas. Both countries are familiar with the basic problem: forests should be utilized for the needs of the national economy, but at the same time a sufficient level of nature protection level should be secured, and responsibility for conserving biodiversity must be taken. Nature conservation cooperation between the two countries has increased in recent years. More specialists and stakeholders are involved and new joint programs have been launched.

Professor Rauno Ruuhijärvi presented the history and present situation of Finnish-Russian nature conservation cooperation. The joint work was originally given concrete expression in Karelia. An internationally important twin park, the “Friendship Park" in the Kuhmo and Kostamus territories, was established from 1987-1990.

This marked the start of the development of the protected areas network. Planning and establishing the Paanajärvi and Vodlajärvi ('Vodlozersky') national parks were made the next objects of cooperation. The concept of the 'Green Belt of Fennoscandia', a zone of protected areas on the Finnish-Russian border regions, was launched. Biodiversity inventories and protected area planning for the Kalevala, Tolvajärvi, Koitajoki, Tuulos and Ladoga Skerries national parks were drawn up. Soon, with the help of the main cooperation partner in Karelia (the Karelian Research Center), the cooperation area began to extend to five other regions of Northwest Russia. In the Leningrad region the main emphasis has been on developing the protected area network on the Karelian Isthmus and on the proposed Ingermanlandskij Strict Nature Reserve, on the islands of the Eastern part of the Gulf of Finland. Nature inventories and national park recommendations were made for four locations in the Murmansk Region (Hiipinä, Laplandskij les, Kutsa and Terskij bereg). In the Arkhangelsk region cooperation has consisted of several international expeditions, which have resulted in conservation recommendations, as well as the inventories and proposal for the Onezhkoe Pomore National Park. The inventories of Great Andoma Watershed have been the fruit of the joint work in the Vologda Region. Cooperation with the City of St. Petersburg began in 2002 and will be concentrated on the development of protected areas owned and managed by the city, especially those vulnerable coastal areas around the Gulf of Finland.

Finnish-Russian conservation cooperation has led to the initiation of a joint project for the Northwest Russia region, a comprehensive assessment of the potential for representation and the gaps in the protected areas network in Northwest Russia (a GAP Analysis). This international project will link biological research to the needs of structural and economic assessment of the protected areas.

Oleg V. Chervjakov, Director of the Vodlozersky National Park, gave a presentation on the current situation and future perspectives of the protected areas of Northwest Russia. As Chairman of the Association of Strict Nature Reserves and National Parks in Northwest Russia he talked about the severe economic problems the protected areas of all statuses have – on the local, regional and federal levels. The parks have therefore developed stronger cooperation amongst themselves and also internationally. Recreational and tourist services are being developed, though infrastructure needs improving.

'Conservation of biodiversity in the Northern regions of Russia today and in the future' was the topic presented by Valery A. Efimov, Senior Specialist of the Laboratory for Protected Areas, Ecology and Culture, of the Institute of ecological problems of the North. In 2001 the Russian Academy of Science, together with the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation, published the National Strategy for Conservation of Biodiversity in Russia. This strategy emphasizes the importance of developing the protected area network. The task is to protect rare, endemic, relic and typical species, nature complexes and ecosystems. Up until 1998, in the Arkhangelsk and Murmansk Regions and in the Republic of Karelia a total of 243 protected areas were established. Among these were 6 Strict Nature Reserves, 3 National Parks, 61 regional nature reserves (zakazniks) and 172 nature monuments. The share of protected areas is 5.2 % of the total area of these regions.

International cooperation has had a significant role in developing the protected areas network in the Arkhangelsk Region, and scientific expeditions have resulted in conservation recommendations. Inventories and a proposal for the Onezhkoe Pomore National Park within Finnish-Russian cooperation will (hopefully in the very near future) result in the establishment of the national park.

The Finnish-Russian development program 'Sustainable Forest Management and Conservation of Biological Diversity in Northwest Russia' was presented by Riitta Hemmi, Coordinator of the Biodiversity projects of the program, from the Finnish Environment Institute. Since the beginning of the program in 1997 nearly 30 biodiversity conservation projects have been implemented in the six aforementioned regions of Northwest Russia. The main objective of the program is to support the development of the protected area network, most of the concrete projects being nature value inventories resulting in conservation area proposals. Support for regional Red Data Book publishing is also an important task of the program.

Aimo Saano presented the Metsähallitus nature conservation cooperation with Russia, i.e., cross-border protected area cooperation. Metsähallitus has the objective of creating an unbroken line of twin parks along the Finnish-Russian border, starting from the Gulf of Finland and ending at the Arctic Sea (Pasvik in Northern Lapland). This kind of network of twin parks enables harmonization of the running and management activities of the protected areas. The Oulanka (Paanajärvi National Parks) and the Friendship Park (Kostamus Strict Nature Reserve) are good examples of working twin parks. The cooperation activities are carried out in biological field research, exchange of information, protected area management planning, ecological training, public awareness campaigns, building and furnishing information centres for protected areas, capacity-building of management personnel and ecological tourism.

Biosphere territory cooperation in Karelia was the topic presented by Timo Hokkanen, Senior Scientist of the Regional Environment Center of North-Karelia. Two biosphere territories have been established in the Finnish-Russian cross border region: the Biosphere Territory of North-Karelia on the Finnish side and the Lapland Biosphere territory on the Kola Peninsula, on the Russian side of the border. The territories are considered to be experiment and research areas in the international UNESCO 'Man and Biosphere' program. Over 400 biosphere territories have been launched all over the world. The biosphere territories always include protected areas (core areas), around which are non-protected, collaboration areas. Human activities are an important part of the biosphere concept.

In the remote Finnish-Russian border regions the crucial task is to offer alternatives to the one-sided economy and, at the same time, to protect nature and use natural resources reasonably. Linking nature protection and the economy requires comprehensive and versatile cooperation between people in research and administration and between local communities.

After the presentations there was a time of public discussion and comments. The constructive comments of the Finnish nature conservation non-governmental organisations were presented by Jouni Nissinen, The Finnish Nature League. He emphasized NGOs' role in the nature conservation work in the Northwest Russia. The NGOs are willing to cooperate in the proposed GAP-Analyses project and therefore would like to be included more intensively to the project planning.

Kari Vitie, Representative of the Finnish Forest Industry Association, emphasized the good relations and the cooperation that the Finnish forest industry companies share with the Russian Forest administration, industrial enterprises and NGOs. The Finnish forestry companies are, first and foremost, customers of Russia. The Finnish forest industry supports the principles of sustainable forestry, but Russian forest legislation must be adhered to.

After closing the seminar the Working Group participants acquainted themselves with the Tvärminne Zoological Station of the University of Helsinki, visited the information centre for the Ekenäs Archipelago National Park and spent the evening in the park. The national park is located in the western archipelago of the Uusimaa province. The park extends from the open marine area right across to the island of Älgö in the inner archipelago. The group hiked around the nature trail of the rather large island of Älgö. The island is covered with dense coniferous forests, and the eastern side of the island features a type of shallow, sheltered bay (flada) characteristic of the inner archipelago.

Working Group meeting in Ekenäs 13.6.2002

The meeting took place in the Ekenäs (Ekenäs in Swedish and Tammisaari in Finnish) town hall and the participants were warmly welcomed by Mayor Henrik Winberg. The meeting was chaired by Nikolai S. Ivanov, Department of the state control and perspective development in the field of nature management and environmental protection in Northwest Russia Federal District, and by Aimo Saano.

On the agenda there were many topical questions, starting with the nature protection reviews of the Northwest Russia regions and Finland. The nature conservation situation in the Republic of Karelia was presented by Evgeni P. Ieshko, Vice Chairman of the Karelian Research Center, by Oleg V. Chervjakov, Director of Vodlozersky National Park and by Sergei V. Tarhov, Director of the Kostamus Strict Nature Reserve. The review of the Leningrad Region and the City of St. Petersburg was given by Georgi A. Noskov, Professor of the Biological institute of St. Petersburg State University. The presentation of nature protection activities in the Arkhangelsk Region was given by Valery A. Efimov, Senior Specialist of the Laboratory for Protected Areas, Ecology and Culture, of the Institute of ecological problems of the North. The present situation regarding the planned national parks in the Murmansk Region was outlined by Vjatseslav V. Nikonov, Vice Director of the Kola Research Center, and by Anatoly M. Hohlov and Olga A. Makarova, Director and Vice Director of the Pasvik Strict Nature Reserve. The projects and present situation in the Vologa Region were outlined by German A. Vorobyev, Professor of the Vologda State Pedagogic University. Pekka Salminen, Nature Conservation Counselor of the Finnish Ministry of the Environment described the present nature conservation situation and programs in Finland.

Other topics discussed at the meeting were: the GAP Analyses project; regional Red Data Books as normative basis for conservation measures; twin park cooperation activities; the establishment of new protected areas in Northwest Russia, especially the Kalevala National Park and the Ingermanlandskij Strict Nature Reserve and international project proposals, such as the proposal of the IUCN “Natural Heritage of the Barents Region: Management of the Interests of Future generations” and the UNESCO World Heritage proposal “Green Belt”.

After the day’s active work and lively discussions all participants stated that the Working Group always has been, and will continue to be, a very important forum for nature conservation cooperation.Work could be intensified by organizing at least one intermediate chairmen meeting in between the Group meetings once a year. It was stated that, on the Russian side, the chairmanship and members should be officially appointed by the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation. The minutes of the meeting were accepted unanimously and the document has been delivered to the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation and to the Finnish Ministry of the Environment.

Riitta Hemmi
Finnish Environment Institute

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