A broad range of stakeholders involved in Metsähallitus’ natural resource planning

Metsähallitus, the Finnish State Forest Enterprise, joins forces with stakeholders in natural resource planning to find innovative and sustainable ways of using state land and water areas. Natural resource planning is now also being launched in Ostrobothnia. The planning method to be used, which is unique by the standards of European forestry administrations, will involve a broad range of stakeholders and draw on creative collaborative techniques.

The aim of Metsähallitus’ natural resource planning is to reconcile different needs and preferences for using state-owned land and waters in Ostrobothnia. New possibilities for using these areas innovatively and sustainably will also be sought as part of the planning exercise. One quarter of the land and water areas of Ostrobothnia is under the administration of Metsähallitus. In addition to multiple-use commercial forests, the area covered by the plan also includes significant conservation sites and tourism destinations, for example in Syöte and Oulanka National Parks, and wide stretches of sea.

The natural resource planning project will be coordinated by a Metsähallitus steering group chaired by Johanna Leinonen, Development Manager at Metsähallitus. A project group chaired by Tuulikki Halla, Project Manager at Metsähallitus, will oversee the progress of the planning process.

The plans will be drafted together with a cooperation group consisting of 28 members who represent associations, educational and research organisations, companies and official bodies. The cooperation group will be chaired by Jukka Tikkanen, Research Director at the University of Eastern Finland.

Metsähallitus and the cooperation group will meet three times during the autumn and winter. Creative collaborative techniques will be used at one-day future workshops. The workshops will be facilitated by Paula Siitonen, PhD who, among other things, teaches creative cooperation methods and skills at Aalto University.

Metsähallitus will also meet other stakeholders and participate in different events. An online survey will be offered to the general public in late 2017.

The end result of the planning process, the Natural Resource Plan for Ostrobothnia, will be completed in spring 2018. It will guide the sustainable use of state land and waters in the regions of Central and North Ostrobothnia for the following five-year period from 2018 to 2023.

Natural resource planning is an important tool for Metsähallitus as an State enterprise administrating state-owned land and water areas. These areas respond to a number of different needs, including conservation, forestry, recreational use, nature tourism, real estate development and soil resource business. Through natural resource planning carried out in cooperation with stakeholders, these needs can be reconciled sustainably.

Metsähallitus has engaged in and developed natural resource planning since 1997. The planning method to be used, which is unique by the standards of European forestry administrations, will involve a broad range of stakeholders and draw on creative collaborative techniques.
Additional information: Project Manager Tuulikki Halla, Metsähallitus, tuulikki.halla(at)metsa.fi, tel. +358 40 595 8943 Development Manager Johanna Leinonen, Chair of the natural resource planning steering group, Metsähallitus, johanna.leinonen(at)metsa.fi, tel. +358 40 730 9114

Read more about natural resource planning in Ostrobothnia (http://www.metsa.fi/web/en/natural-resource-planning-for-ostrobothnia) Cooperation group members (http://www.metsa.fi/web/en/working-groups) Follow natural resource planning in Ostrobothnia on the Project Manager’s Twitter, with some English posts included: @HallaTuuli

 

 

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