Environmental economic assessment of the protection and utilization of forests in the border region
Funded by Interreg II Karelia 1996-1999

Objective of the project

The objective of the project was to create tools necessary for the protection and utilisation of the forests in the border region of Finland and the Republic of Karelia in order to preserve the diversity of forest nature and coordinate the utilisation of forests resources. The project was going to synthesize information on existing studies of impacts on forest protection and utilisation, on the basis of which a model of environmental and economic assessment of forests would be drawn up. The assessment model was going to take into account the economic and livelihood value of forests, as well as the costs of restoring the ecological consequences of forest utilisation. The pilot locations were going to be selected only from the Finnish side (Koillismaa and Kainuu) and their ecological and economic value was determined. The project partner was the Kostomuksha Nature Reserve, which would provide information about the Republic of Karelia, and which would be used in the Finnish economic model. The environmental assessment model was going to be suitable as a tool for both authorities and the forest industry. This was going to allow the timber industry to direct timber harvesting to ecologically sustainable regions of Karelia.

Main activities

Achievements