PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Piejūra Nature Park harbours valuable habitats and species of the Boreal region and is an important nature area both nationally and in Europe. Valuable protected coastal habitats found there include embryonic dunes, white dunes, grey dunes and wooded dunes, which are spread over an area of more than 30 km and are characterised by high biodiversity. In the EU, conservation of these sensitive habitats is becoming more and more important due to the increase of anthropogenic pressure on coastal territories, as well as the increasing strength of storms and subsequent destructive level of coastal erosion. Such climate change consequences are being observed in the park.
OBJECTIVES
The overall objectives of LIFE CoHaBit were to mitigate heavy anthropogenic pressures and to restore vulnerable coastal habitats of Piejūra Nature Park, a Natura 2000 network site. Conservation and restoration actions would be implemented and sustainable management introduced for 13 coastal habitat types (seven of which are priority) listed in the Annex I of the Habitats Directive.
Specific project objectives were to:
- Update the park’s nature management plan;
- Implement concrete conservation and restoration actions;
- Control alien species invasion; and
- Involve the local community including landowners, local residents and other stakeholders in sustainable management of the park by implementing an effective awareness raising/educational campaign.
RESULTS
The LIFE CoHaBit project achieved its objectives of restoring the vulnerable coastal habitats of the Nature Park (NP) Piejura in Latvia, and mitigating heavy anthropogenic pressure on those habitats. The project’s habitat restoration measures impacted around 830 ha.
Project actions had a positive effect on at least 26% of EU Habitats Directive habitat types in the NP Piejura. According to the monitoring report, overall anti-erosion measures have significantly improved the conservation status of ‘Embryonic shifting dunes’ (2110), ‘Shifting dunes along the shoreline with Ammophila arenaria (“white dunes”)’ (2120) and ‘Fixed coastal dunes with herbaceous vegetation (“grey dunes”)’ (2130*), due to reduced maturation effects and gradual regeneration of the natural dune vegetation. New formations of wind-blown sand dunes have also formed, thus facilitating the stabilisation and continuous regeneration of the dunes. The coastal “grey dunes” underwent significant changes after the implementation of biotechnical measures - almost 70% of the dunes of the entire coastal area of NP Piejura were cleared of tree growth. In general, the condition of “grey dunes” has improved throughout the NP, and can be assessed as good. Habitat conditions have significantly improved for a number of rare plant species, including EU Habitats Directive-protected plant species such as sand pink (Dianthus arenarius), as well as the tawny pipit (Anthus campestris) listed in Annex I of the Birds Directive.
As a result of the restoration of the forest habitat type ‘Wooded dunes of the Atlantic, Continental and Boreal region’ (2180), the density of forest stands has decreased and the naturalisation of the once densely-seeded or planted forest dunes was achieved. The vegetation monitoring showed an increase in the number and coverage of characteristic species in all grassland plots in ‘Boreal Baltic coastal meadows’ (1630*). The common reed (Phragmites australis) has significantly decreased (by 5-75%) in all sampling plots. The biotechnological measures carried out by the project have created favourable habitat conditions for a number of plant species protected under the EU Habitats Directive. The biotechnical measures in the Daugavgrīva Lagoon, including the habitat type ‘Coastal lagoons’ (1150*), have also significantly improved the biodiversity of the reed-lagoon complex.
The project demonstrated nature conservation site management in sensitive and unique coastal habitats, where human pressures are high due to nearby densely-urbanised areas, as well as a complex stakeholder structure. It provides good examples of management measures that can be replicated elsewhere, including the control and coordination of visitor flows around the sites to minimise impacts on the protected habitats and species targeted by the project.
Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report and After-LIFE Conservation Plan (see "Read more" section).
