PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The Viikki-Vanhankaupunginlahti nature reserve is uniquely located in the middle of the Finnish capital, Helsinki. The reserve lies around Vanhankaupunginlahti Bay, a reed-fringed sea inlet, and consists of the mouth of the river Vantaa with its accompanying floodplain forests, alder marsh and coastal meadows. Its particular value is in its birdlife: 2,500 pairs, representing 110 different species, breed here while up to 10,000 individuals each of the ruff (Philomachus pugnax) and the wood sandpiper (Tringa glareolus) descend annually on the site to stage. Finally, it is an important spawning area for fish (e.g. lamprey). Its location in the middle of a city makes the site ideal for nature education but also represents its greatest threat. The surrounding fast-growing suburbs already have 123,000 inhabitants, expected to increase by 13,000 by the year 2003. This means even more urban dwellers would be able to enjoy nature in their direct vicinity, but this could simultaneously increase visitor pressure and disturbance, and reduce the conservation value of the area.
OBJECTIVES
The central aim of the LIFE project was to reconcile human enjoyment of the site with its conservation value. Awareness of this value was to be enhanced through various publications and guided tours, while visitor movements would be channelled by building bird observation towers, hides and tracks and employing a warden. Another project target was to expand the size of the reserve by 20% and improve its biodiversity, e.g. by restoring meadows used by waders, for which grazing is regarded as an essential management tool. The LIFE project would also address the high-tension power line crossing the site; bird specialists, landscape architects, the electricity company and engineers were to investigate its effects and the possibilities for moving it. Finally, the project would look at the problem of overgrowth in the reedbeds, assessing through research whether dredging is needed.
RESULTS
LIFE-Nature speeded up the implementation of the management plan for Viikki-Vanhankaupunginlahti (drawn up before the LIFE project) – all targets mentioned for 2003 in the plan had already been reached by June 2000 when the project ended. New ideas to improve the conservation status of the site were also studied by the project, such as putting the electric power lines crossing the SPA underground to reduce bird kills through collisions, or investigating surface organic matter to understand the terrestrialisation of the wetlands and to assess whether or not to dredge them. The protected nature reserve was expanded through the purchase of 8.72 ha (in Saunalahti). The area purchased was mainly water and the owners were paid for the restrictions on use, like restrictions on fishing and boating. Underground pipes were laid to improve water flow in a 3 ha meadow at Purolahti which was too humid - reeds were growing in the meadow - so that grazing could start, in order to improve habitats for meadow birds. Mowing of 14 ha in Lammassaari was done and was followed by grazing. Monitoring results showed that the number of breeding waders increased dramatically to 8 species. The project site’s location in the middle of fast-expanding suburbs makes it ideal for nature education but also represents its greatest threat. The open land around the SPA is important for birds but may eventually be built up. The LIFE-Nature project channelled visitors to routes and infrastructures (nature trails, boardwalks, bird observation towers and bird hide) which it constructed: • A nature trail with bridge, benches and 12 information panels, which got very positive feedback from its users, especially from disabled people (it was desiged with their requirements in mind). • Boardwalks between Pornaistenniemi, Kuusiluoto and Lammassaari were repaired • A hide and a track for bird observation. • Two bird observation towers (Pornaistenniemi, Fastholma). Unusual architecture was used in the towers: there were metal spiral stairs which were not attached to the main tower, in order to avoid movement.The expected number of visitors to the observation towers was 100,000 per year. A nature guide/warden was hired for the summer months, responsible for checking the grazing animals in the Lammassaari meadow, monitoring predators like mink and raccoon dog, giving brochures to visitors and talking to people exhibiting inappropriate behaviour. The main problems were vandalism, litter, people walking with unleashed dogs and biking, boating and fishing inside restricted areas. By the end of the project vandalism had decreased, but according to the beneficiary it was difficult to measure results concerning dog discipline and illegal movement inside restricted areas. More information would be needed about the quality and quantity of visitors. In the communications field, the project produced: • Two brochures as well as two education packages and a slide series • Two videos about the project area (Viikki video of 15 min and a 55 min video 'A paradise in the city') • guided nature trips during the project, with a brochure advertising them Monitoring of birds, vegetation and ground fauna was done during the LIFE project. This showed that the conservation status of bird species in the project area increased thanks to the measures implemented during the LIFE-Nature project. There were four new breeding species: Botaurus stellaris (last known breeding was from 1993, but in 2000 there was one territory), Anas strepera (breeding discovered for the first time in 2000), Rallus aquaticus (9 territories in 2000), Acrocephalus arundinaceus. Bird species breeding in meadows and staging waders significantly benefited from the biotope management (mowing and grazing) of meadows. The populations of fish-eating Podiceps cristatus and water plant-eating Fulica atra were recovering by project end. Circus aeroginosus, Crex crex, Dendrocopus leucotos, Sturnus vulgaris, Gallinago media, Tringa erythropus also benefited from the actions carried out during the LIFE-Nature project, coupled to parallel work like building a barrier against waste water from the vicinity and trapping small predators.