The Baltic Sea2Land project guides harmonizing land and sea planning at local level: The case of Saaremaa (Estonia)

The goal of the project is to balance the interests of sustainable blue economy sectors (e.g. tourism, energy, fisheries etc.), nature conservation, local communities. It is expected that the piloting of the Sea2Land Navigator tool will support Saaremaa’s coastal development in a sustainable way that takes into account human and natural wealth.

Panga cliff. Photo: Marko Palm

The project activity and research of the Saaremaa municipality focuses on the use of Saaremaa’s coastal land and water area, concentrating on both – the existing and possible development trends of the coastal area’s land use. Saaremaa municipality participates, among other things, in general information exchange and knowledge transfer in cooperation with Tallinn University.

Saaremaa municipality representatives indicate: “Our goal is to involve relevant stakeholders from different sectors, review existing situations based on available knowledge, identify problems and challenges of planning land and sea area. This also includes visualizing data by mapping existing studies and gathering more relevant information.”

Mapping and analysing of existing information. Figure by Saaremaa Municipality

As part of the project implemented by the Saaremaa municipality, it is also expected to receive input from its residents. From 9th November until 10th December 2023 a survey is conducted on ‘which coastal areas locals use’. This survey helps to understand where and how locals have access to the shore paths and for what activities.

Saaremaa municipality together with the University of Tallinn are planning the first project seminar in January 2024. It will be an introduction for different stakeholders of Baltic Sea2Land Saaremaa´s piloting strategies and finding ways to co-work on this project. Later there will be coming more seminars mainly organized in densely populated and strategically chosen areas with the focus on more precise thematic input to the pilot’s main objectives.

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