Distribution of the Green Network of Estonia

Estonia has joined the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy which obligates signatories to participate in developing the Pan-European Ecological Network. The plan "Environmental conditions for guiding settlement and land use" was initiated in all 15 counties of Estonia in 1999. One of the important subtopics of this plan is the "Green Network". The first thematic plans were validated in three counties in 2002. The last county to validate its Green Network thematic plan was Saare County in 2008. The Green Network of Estonia is supposed to complement the network of protected areas, combining them into a unified system of natural areas. One of the goals of the Estonian Green Network was to spatially incorporate the Natura 2000 sites as areas of European importance. Results demonstrated that in 10 of the 15 counties, this goal can be considered to have been achieved, as a minimum of 95% of the Natura 2000 sites within these counties have been incorporated into the Green Network. In three of the other counties about 90% have been incorporated, but in Võru and Valga counties, this percentage is much lower. In Võru, 75% of the Natura 2000 sites have been incorporated into the Green Network and in Valga only 60%. Therefore the revision of Green Network thematic plans should be considered in these counties.