BPAN POLICY BRIEF | www.bpan.fi | 5.12.2013

Barents Protected Area Network Recommendations for Strengthening the Protected Area Network in the Barents Region

There is a need for prompt establishment of planned protected areas and conservation of the last intact forests.

• In February 2010 in Tromsø, Norway, the Barents environment ministers urged further steps to protect the last intact boreal forests and underlined the importance of identifying and establishing a representative network of protected areas in the Barents Region (BPAN). The importance of BPAN was further confirmed in November 2013 by the chair of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council. • The countries of the Barents Euro-Arctic Region have a special responsibility to conserve biodiversity, since the valuable ecosystems of the region represent natural heritage of global significance. In addition, its intact forest, mire and ecosystems are enermous carbon stores. • The most significant threats to biodiversity in the Barents Region are habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, as well as rapidly changing climate. Increasing and too often unsustainable use of natural resources creates a serious threat to natural environment and ecosystems. An ecologically functioning and well connected protected area network serves - even by itself - as an effective tool for biodiversity conservation and also mitigates the impacts of climate change and helps the nature and people in adaptation to changing environmental conditions. 10°E 20°E 30°E 40°E 50°E 60°E 70°E 70°N

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CLASS OF PROTECTION y Strong protection Planned protected area All the BPAN pilot l m Medium level protection BPAN Pilot sites sites are high e KARA Weak protection Border of the Barents Region Z

conservation value

a areas. BPAN project y SEA

has implemented a v

Tromsø o NORWEGIAN activities to support N 70°N theirBARENTS conservation as Finnmark SEA Troms Vadsø statutory protected areaSEAs. Bodø Murmansk

Nordland Murmansk 65°N Region Lapland Nenets Nar'yan Mar Autonomous Norrbotten Rovaniemi Okrug Luleå Väster- botten Oulu 65°N Umeå Northern Ostrobothnia Kainuu Kajaani Republic GULF OF of Karelia Arkhangelsk Republic of Komi BOTHNIA Region

60°N Barents Protected Petrozavodsk Syktyvkar Area

Network BPAN project 2013, SYKE and Transparent World. 60°N Protected areas are shown as of 8th March 2013. © The Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management © The Karelian Regional Nature Conservancy © Finnish Environment institute, SYKE © WWF Arkhangelsk office © ELY Centres © Centre of Nature Management and Environmental Monitoring © Lantmäteriet © Forest Committee of the Republic of Komi © Metsähallitus © Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republicof Komi 0 100 200 300 km © Transparent World © Territorial Information Center for Natural Resources and © Kola Biodiversity30°E Conservation Center EnvironmentProtection of the Republic40°E of Komi 50°E 60°E

The Barents Region consists of a total area of 1,8 million km² in the northernmost parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and northwest . For approximately 40% of the protected area, the protection against land use is inadequate to guarantee conservation of terrestrial ecosystems. Most of these protected areas are situated in northwest Russia.

Urgent need to protect unique Analysis of the network boreal and arctic nature of protected areas The primary aim of the Barents Protected Area Network (BPAN) The BPAN project has harmonised and analysed information on project is to promote and support the development of a representative protected areas in the Barents Region including their distribution and protected area network in the Barents Euro-Arctic Region to conserve ecological representativeness in proportion to the main ecosystems. biodiversity of boreal and arctic ecosystems, particularly forests and A network of protected areas is under development in the Barents wetlands. The BPAN project is a key biodiversity project of the Barents Region. Gap analyses have been conducted to determine the most Euro-Arctic Council’s (BEAC) Working Group on Environment and important sites for biodiversity conservation and many of these its subgroup on nature protection. are included in the national and regional plans to be established The BPAN project contributes to the internationally agreed as protected areas. Aichi Biodiversity Targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity In the Barents Region 13,2% (231 600 km2) of the terrestrial area (CBD) to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2020. Barents Protected is protected for biodiversity conservation. Countries and regions Area Network is a regional initiative to implement the Programme of the Barents Region are in the process of implementing nature of Work on Protected Areas of the CBD. conservation plans which include establishing 59 400 km2 as The BPAN project was implemented in 2010–2013 by nature protected areas. If all planned protected areas were established as conservation authorities, scientific institutes and nature conservation statutory protected areas, the level of protection would increase non-governmental organisations with funding from the Nordic to cover 16,6% of the total area. However, as some of these areas Council of Ministers, the Governments of Finland, Sweden and are not planned to be established by 2020, the current pace of Norway, WWF Russia and other participating organisations. implementation of nature conservation plans is inadequate for the attempts of the Region to achieve the Aichi Target 11. AICHI BIODIVERSITY Target 11 ”By 2020, at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance AICHI BIODIVERSITY Target 5 for biodiversity and ecosystem services, are conserved through effectively and ”By 2020, the rate of loss of all natural habitats, including forests, is at equitably managed, ecologically representative and well-connected systems least halved and where feasible brought close to zero, and degradation and of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, fragmentation is significantly reduced.” and integrated into the wider landscape and seascape.” 10°E 20°E 30°E 40°E 50°E 60°E 70°E 70°N a

CLASS OF PROTECTION y Strong protection Planned protected area l m Medium level protection BPAN Pilot sites e KARA Weak protection Border of the Barents Region Z THE MAIN ECOSYSTEMS IN THE BARENTS REGION (%) LEVEL OF PROTECTION IN MAIN ECOSYSTEMS (%) a 60 50

y SEA 55,8% a 48,3% v

Tromsø o 50 NORWEGIAN N BARENTS 70°N 40 Finnmark Vaygach island SEA Troms Vadsø 40 SEA 30 Bodø 30 Kolguyev island Murmansk 20,2% 20 20 Nordland Murmansk 65°N 14,5% 15,7% 12,6% 12,6% Region 11,4% Lapland Nenets Nar'yan 10 10 Mar Autonomous 5,6% Norrbotten Rovaniemi Okrug 2,15% Luleå 0 0 Väster- FOREST ALPINE AND OPEN GLACIER FRESH FOREST ALPINE AND OPEN GLACIER FRESH botten LOWLAND WETLAND WATER LOWLAND WETLAND WATER Oulu 65°N TUNDRA TUNDRA Umeå Northern Ostrobothnia Kainuu Kajaani Arkhangelsk Republic GULF OF of Karelia Arkhangelsk Republic of Komi BOTHNIA Region OTHER FRESH 10°W 0° 0,9% 10°E 20°E 30°E 40°E 50°E 60°E 70°E 80°E 90°E 60°N WATER 60°E To reach the Aichi 10°W 0°E 20°E 50°E Biodiversity Targets 90°E 75°N 5,3% 30°E FORESTS more forests and glaciers 80°N Petrozavodsk Syktyvkar 48,2% 7,8% wetlands need to be

protected.80°E BPAN project 2013, SYKE and Transparent World. 60°N th Protected areas are shown as of 8 March 2013. 75°N © The Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management © The Karelian Regional Nature Conservancy open © Finnish Environment institute, SYKE © WWF Arkhangelsk office 70°E © ELY Centres © Centre of Nature Management and Environmental Monitoring Land cover wetlands © Lantmäteriet © Forest Committee of the Republic of Komi © Metsähallitus © Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republicof Komi 0 100 200 300 km © Transparent World © Territorial Information Center for Natural Resources and 13,8% © Kola Biodiversity30°E Conservation Center EnvironmentProtection of the Republic40°E of Komi 50°E 60°E in existing protected areas

ALPINE and 40°E 70°N lowland TUNDRA a y 24% l m KARA e

NORWEGIAN Z

70°N

a SEA

SEA y

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BARENTS v

Tromsø o Finnmark N Vaygach island Troms SEA Vadsø

Bodø nd lguyev isla Murmansk Ko Nordland 65°N Murmansk Lapland Region Norrbotten Nar'yan Rovaniemi Nenets Mar Autonomous Väster- Luleå 65°N botten Okrug

Oulu Umeå WHITE SEA Kajaani Kainuu

Republic Arkhangelsk of Karelia Republic of Komi BPAN project 2013 SYKE and Transparent World 60°N Protected areas are shown as of 8th March 2013.

© The Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management Arkhangelsk © Finnish Environment institute, SYKE Region © ELY Centres Petrozavodsk © Lantmäteriet Syktyvkar 60°N © Metsähallitus © Transparent World © Kola Biodiversity Conservation Center © The Karelian Regional Nature Conservancy © WWF Arkhangelsk office © Centre of Nature Management and Environmental Monitoring © Forest Committee of the Republic of Komi © Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republicof Komi © Territorial Information Center for Natural Resources and EnvironmentProtection of the Republic of Komi

0 200 400 600 800 km

20°E 30°E 40°E 50°E 60°E BPAN POLICY BRIEF | www.bpan.fi | 5.12.2013

RECOMMENDATIONS The protected area network in the Barents Region needs to be further strengthened in order to contribute to the achievement of CBD Aichi Biodiversity Targets and other international commitments. That implies: • Results of national and regional gap analyses on high conservation value areas and representativeness of the protected area network should be taken into consideration. Representativeness of the protected area network should be assured through the establishment of protected areas in under-represented habitats and ecosystems. • There is a need for prompt establishment of planned protected areas as statutory protected areas by 2020. • In particular, large intact areas need to be prioritised for protection as they are crucial in maintaining ecological processes and ecosystem functions, and are under pressure from intensified land use.

The last intact forests have unique values and their protection requires special attention • Protection of productive old-growth forests and larger intact forest landscapes should have high priority. • High conservation value areas, identified in the Gap analysis of northwest Russia, need to be protected. Information on high conservation value areas of the whole Barents Region should be compiled.

In the light of changing climate and intensifying land use there is a need for better connectivity between protected areas • A comprehensive assessment of the connectivity of protected area systems is needed. • The Barents Region has a few principal ecological corridors of relatively intact ecosystems, which have special importance for biodiversity. Conservation of these corridors should get special attention. • Development of the road network needs better spatial planning and environmental impact assessment. Protected areas, planned protected areas and other high conservation value areas need to be taken into consideration.

Regulations and effective management of protected areas need to be improved • Improved and more appropriate regulations, particularly for regional protected areas in northwest Russia, need to be taken into consideration. • There is a need to develop and update management plans and monitoring schemes for protected areas. • More comprehensive assessment of management effectiveness is needed.

The participation of stakeholders in planning and management of protected areas needs to be improved • More work should be done to involve local communities, indigenous peoples and other stakeholders in protected area planning and management. It is very important that they are committed to the protected areas.

Sustainable financing needs to be ensured • Financing of protection, implementation of protected area plans, programmes and management actions varies in the Barents Region, but in general it is insufficient. • The largest planned protected areas with intact forests of international significance are located in northwest Russia. Therefore it is important that Russian regional authorities are provided with sufficient, long-term resources to ensure establishment of statutory protected areas.

There is a strong need to continue co-operation to strengthen the protected area network • Co-operation in the BPAN project has been successful and should be further strengthened for the second stage of the BPAN project.

Contact BPAN coordination Anna Kuhmonen, [email protected] Read more: BPAN project www.bpan.fi Read more: programme of Work on Protected Areas www.cbd.int/protected/

References: Barents Protected Area Network (BPAN). 2013. Evaluation of the Protected Area Network in the Barents Region – Using the Programme of Work on Protected Areas of the Convention on Biological Diversity as a Tool. Barents Protected Area Network (BPAN). 2013. The Characteristics and Representativeness of the Protected Area Network in the Barents Region. Authors: Anna Kuhmonen, Dmitry Aksenov, Denis Dobrynin, Knut Fossum, Olle Höjer, Bengt-Gunnar Johnsson, Sanna-Kaisa Juvonen, Yuliya Khrustaleva, Tapio Lindholm, Victor Petrov, Vladimir Shibeko, Nikolay Sobolev, Oleg Sutkaitis and Tatyana Tyupenko. Photo: Artyom Stolpovsky. Map design: Irina Danilova. Layout: Erika Várkonyi. Edita Prima 2013. Oy,

ISBN 978-952-11-4244-4 (nid.) • ISBN 978-952-11-4245-1 (PDF)