Evolution and Growth of Protected Area Sizes
Finland’s first Nature Conservation Act came into effect in 1923. At first nature conservation was centred on protecting individual species by law, different types of statutes concerning hunting and fishing and protecting natural monuments and establishing some protected areas. The oldest protected areas owned by the state Pyhätunturi and Pallas-Ounastunturi National Parks and Malla and Pisavaara Strict Nature Reserves were established in 1938. The next seven National Parks were established in 1956.
National nature conservation programmes and their additions were approved between 1978 and 1996. The realisation of these programmes will continue at least to the end of 2008. The Wilderness Act which constituted that 12 wilderness areas were established in Lapland came into effect in 1991. In 1998 Finland started to build its Natura 2000 network. It is made up, for the most part, of already established protected areas, wilderness areas and national hiking areas. Finland’s Natura 2000 network also includes many nature conservation programme areas.
9 % of Finland’s territory is protected in one way or another
In accordance to the Nature Conservation and Wilderness Acts, 9 % of Finland’s territory is protected. The number of protected areas tells only part of the story of Finland’s nature conservation efforts. An important part of conserving nature’s diversity is based on where protected areas are located and what type of nature there is in these areas. The largest protected areas are located in Finland’s three northernmost municipalities. In southern Finland, where most of the population lives, the total area of protected areas is smaller. Even though the areas are smaller area-wise in the north, there are still many of them in southern Finland and the nature is diverse.
The Nature Conservation Act was amended in 1997. According to the law, the aim of nature conservation is to ensure nature’s diversity. This is furthered not only by protecting areas by law, but also by protecting and caring for threatened organisms and their environment as well as biotopes more effectively than before. One of the aims of establishing protected areas is that all biotopes appearing in Finland be represented in these areas.
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