Natural Resource Planning
In natural resource planning, use of the land and water areas that are under Metsähallitus’ administration is planned with multiple goals. This means that the use and management of natural resources is broadly reviewed from the perspective of their different forms of use. The goal is to reconcile the possibilities offered by natural resources with the needs of different parties to form an effective whole. Different forms of use of state lands are, among others, nature conservation, forestry, recreation, eco-tourism, real estate development and the sale of soil resources.
In the natural resource planning process, the characteristics of an area are assessed in terms of not only economic sustainability, but also in terms of ecological and social sustainability . The main goal of ecological planning is to ensure the preservation and spread of the local flora and fauna. In social planning, area use is evaluated from the perspective of, among others, the requirements of recreational use and/or nature-based economies. Various alternative calculations are made to facilitate the assessment, making it possible to illustrate any correlation between the different operating practices, as well as advantages and drawbacks.
Metsähallitus’ personnel and many local stakeholder groups participate in natural resource planning in so-called co-operation groups. Metsähallitus’ policies are fine-tuned as results of the planning process and, for example, the emphasis that will be placed on conservation and recreational use as well as the scope of forestry operations are determined on a regional basis.
- Seven regional natural resource plans were drawn up by Metsähallitus between 1997 and 2001:Western Finland, Eastern Finland, and the regions of Kainuu, Ostrobothnia, Western Lapland, Eastern Lapland and Northern Lapland.
- In 2002, a new round of planning was initiated in the region of Kainuu: In the new planning system, the old form of natural resource planning is combined with landscape ecological planning. In addition, co-operation with stakeholder groups is now emphasised even more than before.
- The natural resource plans for Kainuu and Western Finland were completed in 2004.
The plans for Western, Eastern and Northern Lapland are currently being revised.