Mapping policies for surface water protection zones on forest land in the Nordic–Baltic region: Large differences in prescriptiveness and zone width

TY - JOUR

T1 - Mapping policies for surface water protection zones on forest land in the Nordic–Baltic region

T2 - Large differences in prescriptiveness and zone width

AU - Ring, Eva

AU - Johansson, Johanna

AU - Sandström, Camilla

AU - Bjarnadóttir, Brynhildur

AU - Finer, Leena

AU - Libiete, Zane

AU - Lode, Elve

AU - Stupak, Inge

AU - Sætersdal, Magne

PY - 2017/12/1

Y1 - 2017/12/1

N2 - The forest landscape across the Nordic and Baltic regions hosts numerous lakes and watercourses, which must be included in forest management. In this study, national policy designs regarding protection zones for surface waters on forest land were reviewed and compared for the Nordic countries, Estonia and Latvia. The focus was how each country regulates protection zones, whether they are voluntary or mandatory, and the rationale behind adopting a low or high degree of prescriptiveness. Iceland and Denmark had a low degree of policy prescriptiveness, whereas Norway, Estonia and Latvia had a high degree of prescriptiveness. Sweden and Finland relied to a large extent on voluntary commitments. The prescribed zone widths within the region ranged from 1 m to 5 km. The results indicated that land-use distribution, forest ownership structure and historical and political legacies have influenced the varying degrees of prescriptiveness in the region.

AB - The forest landscape across the Nordic and Baltic regions hosts numerous lakes and watercourses, which must be included in forest management. In this study, national policy designs regarding protection zones for surface waters on forest land were reviewed and compared for the Nordic countries, Estonia and Latvia. The focus was how each country regulates protection zones, whether they are voluntary or mandatory, and the rationale behind adopting a low or high degree of prescriptiveness. Iceland and Denmark had a low degree of policy prescriptiveness, whereas Norway, Estonia and Latvia had a high degree of prescriptiveness. Sweden and Finland relied to a large extent on voluntary commitments. The prescribed zone widths within the region ranged from 1 m to 5 km. The results indicated that land-use distribution, forest ownership structure and historical and political legacies have influenced the varying degrees of prescriptiveness in the region.

U2 - 10.1007/s13280-017-0924-8

DO - 10.1007/s13280-017-0924-8

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 28573599

SN - 0044-7447

VL - 46

SP - 878

EP - 893

JO - Ambio

JF - Ambio

IS - 8

ER -