Mapping Blue-Green infrastructure to evaluate conditions in the Estonian coastal zone

Blue-Green Infrastructure (BGI) is a framing concept concerning the connectivity of ecosystems, founded on nature-based solutions and a multi-functionality approach, which includes contributions by nature to disaster risk reduction, infrastructure resilience, erosion control, land formation, and other ecosystem services (World Risk Report, 2012). The study reviews the potential of areas of BGI to mitigate climate change (EEA Report, 2009) and produces maps showing fragmentation areas along the Estonian coast using UAVs and satellite imagery. This allows a more detailed and objective evaluation of the indicators of the conservation state and potential improvement of future connectivity between BGI elements, ensuring coverage of appropriate protection status for coastal habitats. Reliable estimation and understanding of the ecological integrity of habitats and species on the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network, including analysis of valuable coastal areas to define missing indicators and formulate essential markers for its resilience in Estonia. A disconnected series of inefficiently managed natural components produce far fewer public benefits than they have the potential for.

A comprehensive study of the Estonian coastal zone is based on Estonian legislation, Integrated Coastal Zone Management, the CORINE Land Cover (CLC) system, natural protected areas (NPA), the Estonian Green Network, Agricultural Registers, and Information Board (ARIB), Natura 2000, and benthic habitats datasets that apply to land use regulation in the development planning process to identify the appropriate intensity of land-use and conflicts of interest to be resolved. National BGI strategies, either independently or integrated into broader national policies, identify blue and green assets, corridors, and areas of particular importance outside protected areas that would help the policy instruments. Estonia has been actively planning a blue-green infrastructure approach since 1983, at least in the ecological network sense on a national level, and elaborates the model into a comprehensive plan and implementation program.