PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Coastal master plans are crucial to preserving vulnerable coastlines which are threatened by uncontrolled building and economic development. Since 1996, the European Commission has been promoting a demonstration programme to identify appropriate measures to remedy the deterioration of conditions in these coastal zones, whilst at national level, the amendments to the Finnish Building Act 1997 have made planning obligatory in coastal areas. However, existing regional and master plans in Finland have been problematic because they only partly cover the coastal areas and do not sufficiently control new building, or weigh up sufficiently the competing environmental, social and economic demands. The Southern Archipelago of Finland poses particular problems. It is a unique natural area consisting of four main zones: mainland coast, inner archipelago zone, outer archipelago zone and marine zone. These zones were formed during the ice age. Once the ice melted, the land rose and new islands emerged from the sea, creating four zones charaterised by different combinations of land, islands and sea, each with a very distinctive vegetation, bird and animal life. The project area includes two national parks, several areas of the Natura 2000 network and nature protection areas. However, it is also an area with strong economic and social demands, due to its proximity to the capital Helsinki. This has lead to intense pressure both for mobile boating tourism and for increased development of summer cottages. Effective land-use planning is therefore vital if a balance is to be found between these different environmental, social and economic needs. The current project was developed to fill this gap and was promoted by seven municipalities, covering the major part of the archipelago area, backed by the Regional Environmental Centre. The project also formed part of the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Demonstration Programme at EU level (ICZM).
OBJECTIVES
The main goal of the project was to promote master planning in the coastal zone of the Gulf of Finland as a way of developing effective land use planning for the management of unique coastal areas. These plans would prioritise the preservation of the still unbuilt coastline and guide all new building, whilst promoting sustainable development of the region. The master plans would be developed as an innovative exercise representing a joint planning process between local and regional administrations (regional councils and environmental centres), with the municipalities in charge of the detailed drawing up process, backed by specialist consultants. The Regional Environment Centre would support the planning work, transmit information and arrange joint meetings between the participating planning groups. The Master Planning procedure to be followed was: 1. Initial Planning phase 2. Nature and cultural heritage inventories 3. Defining Goals 4. Planning options, draft plan and public inspection 5. Planning proposal, public inspection 6. Approval by the municipal council 7. Ratification by the regional environment centre. The project was expected to integrate new methodologies and tools in the planning procedure: environmental assessment procedures, (EIA), Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and participatory planning. It would also look to develop cooperation networks with other countries and particularly Baltic Sea nations (Sweden, Estonia) and promote collaboration over the joint management of coastal areas.
RESULTS
The project succeeded in considerably extending the scope of master planning in the Southern Archipelago, representing the largest coastal master planning cooperation project in Finland. By the end of the project, the plan covered 173.000 hectares of land and water areas and approximately 2,330 kilometres of coastline, representing a quarter of the total southern coastline of Finland. This included 17,600 hectares of Natura 2000 network areas (areas protected under national conservation programmes or other nature conservation area) and 850 hectares set aside for recreational purposes. The project was innovative as it represented the first time local and regional authorities had worked together on a joint process of this type, and in the use of innovative tools: particularly EIA and participative planning processes. It also created new structures for Baltic Sea cooperation. The first stage of the process was the drawing up of in-depth natural and cultural heritage inventories. Much of this involved the collection of new information, taking into account protected habitat sites defined under the new Nature Conservation Act. All information was saved in databases using a geographical information system (GIS), Arcview and MapInfo. This formed the basis for the definition of the four Archipelago planning zones, and dictated the building regulations, water management and building rights. The second stage was the drawing up of development strategies and planning options. For the first time, local inhabitants participated in the planning process and forced the authorities to look for solutions to conflicts of interests between main stakeholders: particularly land and property owners and environmental authorities. A key question was the determination of building rights of present landowners, as the local authority and landowners had traditionally allowed the construction of summer cottages as one of the few ways to develop the area and the local economy. In the end, equal treatment was ensured by selecting 1959 as a baseline year. Progress was made in integrating environmental assessment techniques (EIA) in the planning procedure, and with the development of planning reports which better described the whole planning procedure. Public participation and dissemination were made into key elements of the planning process and succeeded in awakening wide interest, although the preference for individual contacts and the lack of experience of the local authorities in promoting dynamic participation in large meetings was noticed. Schoolchildren’s participation was a key success element, giving publicity to the process and enabling young peoples' interests to be included in the planning process (e.g. the inclusion of swimming areas). Baltic Sea cooperation was given a significant boost with joint discussions over sustainable development carried out with Sweden and Estonia focusing on key topics such as building legislation and tourist development. Despite the progress made, the project recognised the need for more resources. Although land-use planning was an important new tool, it could not be the only means for realizing development goals. It was recognized that more discussion was needed to reconcile the different priorities and needs of various sectors, if the biodiversity of coastal zones was to be preserved within an integrated sustainable development strategy.
