The Estonian-Russian transboundary waters require close and practical cooperation In 1995, Estonia acceded to the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes, adopted three years earlier in Helsinki. The purpose of the convention is to protect international lakes and transboundary waters from transboundary environmental impacts and pollution, and to...

The purpose of the convention is to protect the whale populations The International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling aims to protect whale populations and ensure the sustainability of whaling. The convention was signed and entered into force in 1946 in Washington. Estonia acceded to the convention in 2008. As at 2022, 88 countries have acceded to the convention [1]. The International...

The IUCN identifies and maps the world’s major environmental conservation challenges and develops measures to address or mitigate them The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organisation established in 1948 to promote nature conservation and the ecologically sustainable use of natural resources. The union brings together national governments, non-governmental...

The Kihnu native sheep is a local landrace breed. Initially, the Kihnu native was a pan-Estonian breed that could be found everywhere in the country. However, by the beginning of the 21st century, the breed had only survived on Kihnu Island Descendent of the mouflon sheep, The Kihnu native sheep belongs to the group of Northern European short-tailed sheep who have been located in Northern Europe...

The flora and fauna of Lake Peipsi are rich in species Lake Peipsi is one of the largest lakes in Europe. The lake has an area of about 3,543 km 2, a length of about 135 km, a width of 48 km, an average depth of 8 m, and a maximum depth of 17.6 m [1]. The lake is divided into Lake Peipsi (Suurjärv), Lake Pihkva, and Lake Lämmijärv. The basin of Lake Peipsi covers 47,802 km 2 – it is larger than...

The biota of Lake Võrtsjärv is quite rich in species – 35 species of fish have been found here Lake Võrtsjärv is the second largest lake in Estonia. It has an area of about 270 km 2, a length of about 35 km and a width of 15 km in the north, an average depth of 2.8 m, and a maximum depth of 6.0 m. The catchment basin of Lake Võrtsjärv covers 3,380 km 2 [1]. Lake Võrtsjärv is a flow-through lake...

Landscapes of memory are place-lore collected in Estonian national parks The landscape of memory brings together place-lore, stories, and legends that can be associated with a specific place on the map. Residents of the immediate area have identified themselves through that legacy for centuries and shaped the so-called us-and-them feelings, which are important for the survival and self...

This page provides information on biosafety-related legislation in various countries. The search function can be used in English.

In the case of limited-conservation areas, the protection rules are not established and they are not divided into zones of different severity A limited-conservation area is an area designated for the protection of habitats, the preservation of which is ensured with an assessment of the impact of the proposed activities and where activities detrimental to the favourable condition of the area are...

The species richness of settlements is mainly concentrated to parks and gardens, where there are also more natural species Human activities affect most of today’s communities. In Estonia, humans have only refrained from significantly interfering with the development of bogs, other primitive communities are extremely rare. Even some forests that appear to be primeval forests grow on sites that were...