Finland will use EU funding to boost target habitats and garner private-sector funding to make biodiversity projects more financially sustainable, the government announced.
The Nordic country will launch a €50 million biodiversity project, of which €30 mln will be funded through the EU’s LIFE programme.
“We cannot find solutions to climate change or biodiversity loss with public funding alone, instead, an even broader funding base is needed that also includes private investments and actions for biodiversity,” said Minister of Climate and the Environment Kai Mykkanen.
During the eight-year project, new forms of funding for combating biodiversity loss will also be sought, with a view to establishing long-term financing that doesn’t rely on the public purse. However, details on the types of private sector funding are somewhat opaque at this early stage.
The initiative also aims to develop regional biodiversity programmes nationwide and fund restoration activities, as well as funnel finance into the nature economy by boosting green jobs.
Restoration and nature management measures will be carried out through the country’s Helmi Habitats Programme. Helmi is a joint programme of the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry that aims to tackle the deterioration of habitats.
The programme aims to improve the state of degraded habitat types with a focus on waterfowl habitats, mires, forests, semi-natural grasslands, small water bodies, and shores.
Due to the scale of the project and the interconnection between its focus on green jobs and private investment, the overall coordination will be delivered through the Finnish Prime Minister’s Office from Jan. 2024.
Other government agencies and participants include the Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Ministry of Finance, Finnish Environment Institute, Finnish Museum of Natural History, Finnish Forest Centre, Finnish Food Authority, and WWF Finland
The EU’s LIFE programme has been a major donor to Finland’s biodiversity agenda in recent years, having provided €121 mln of co-financing for 69 projects that invested a total of €218 mln.
Previously funded projects include species-specific interventions for the wild forest reindeer, white-tailed eagle, and the Saimaa ringed seal.
Finland’s last national biodiversity strategy and action plan (NBSAP) covered the period 2012-20. However, no updated version has yet been submitted to the Convention on Biodiversity Diversity.
Countries are due to submit revised versions of their NBSAPs by COP16 next year under their commitments from the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreed last year, many of which are expected to include investment plans to achieve global targets.
By Tom Woolnough – tom@carbon-pulse.com
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