In the section on green initiatives, we take a closer look at how any organisation or company, or indeed any person, can reduce the negative environmental impacts of their activities and thus contribute to improving the state of the environment and protect biodiversity. Green procurements are a powerful administrative tool for both the public and private sectors in moving towards more...

A green office pays attention to the environmental awareness of employees and the promotion of it among them, as well as the general environmental and health friendliness of the office premises The goal of an environmentally friendly or green office is to continuously monitor and reduce the organisation’s environmental impact, which results in cost savings, sustainable use of natural resources...

There are seven HELCOM areas in Estonia, covering 24% of Estonia’s territorial sea The Helsinki Convention, or the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area (also the HELCOM Convention), is designed to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea. The first version of the convention was adopted in 1974 and entered into force in 1980. Estonia acceded to this...

It is easier for both people and animals to move along a trail. Trails connect people, animals, and places With the help of marked trails in nature, it is possible to introduce natural values to hikers both in and outside protected areas. Trails direct visitors away from places where, from a nature conservation point of view, it would be better if people did not go. The Environmental Board, the...

The purpose of the marked trails in nature is to introduce natural values to hikers both in and outside protected areas There is no explanation for the meaning, differences, and similarities of the phrases ‘hiking trail’ and ‘nature trail’. It seems that no need for that has arisen. The Estonian Ramblers’ Association’s Matkaseletussõnastik (Explanatory dictionary on hiking) says that a hiking...

The greatest threat to the sacred sites is forgetting they exist A sacred natural site is an internationally used term which, as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), means areas of land or water having special spiritual significance to peoples and communities [1]. Based on the above, sacred natural sites in Estonia are defined as things or areas without significant...

The difficult journey of the control of alien species: the giant hogweed and Sosnowsky’s hogweed in Estonia? Systematic control of alien species in Estonia began with two species of hogweed: the giant hogweed and Sosnowsky’s hogweed. They were brought to us mainly as silage during the Soviet era, but have proved to be troublesome nuisances that have now been controlled for more than a decade. The...