The objective of nature conservation is maintaining and preserving biodiversity. One important part of nature conservation is species protection and ensuring the good status of all natural species of Estonia.
Based on the Nature Conservation Act, nature is protected by targeting the use of valuable areas – by establishing protected areas, regulating transactions carried out with specimens of protected species, promoting natural education and research as well as determining the liability for violations.
In Estonia, there are three main types of protected areas:
- national parks
- nature conservation areas
- landscape conservation areas.
In addition to conservation areas, protected natural objects are:
- special conservation areas
- species protection sites
- individual protected natural objects
- natural objects protected at local government level
- protected species and fossils
- parks.
Additional information is available on the webpage of the Ministry of the Environment and on the webpage of the Environmental Board.
References
- Homepage of Estonian protected areas
- eBiodiversity portal
- Nature conservation
- Nature conservation planning
- Activities in protected areas