To provide information on the activities planned by JSC “Latvijas valsts meži” (LVM) to be carried out by the end of 2028 as part of the LIFE-IP LatViaNature project in the “Engures ezers” Nature Park, an informative seminar was held on 27 April in the areas where the work is intended to take place.

Meeting with representatives of the municipality, the State Forest Service, the Nature Conservation Agency (DAP), the Engures ezera dabas parka fonds, and other stakeholders, LVM provided information on the plans and discussed the best solutions to improve the condition of the nature park's valuable feature – the EU-priority habitat Wooded dunes of the Atlantic, continental and boreal region – while simultaneously testing the most appropriate methodological solutions to improve the habitat's structure and restore it as close as possible to its natural state.

The work area will also serve as one of the locations where the developed remote sensing forest monitoring methodology will be tested.

It is planned that the first work to improve the structures of the wooded dunes in the “Engures ezers” Nature Park could begin as early as the autumn of this year, with the commencement of the creation of sun-exposed openings characteristic of the habitat. In total, work in the park is planned in two territories with a total area of 33 hectares.

“Drawing on both historical experience and best practice examples in the management of this habitat, we have evaluated with dune experts what work would be desirable in the “Engures ezers” Nature Park to preserve this special habitat in good quality for future generations. Historical information on the management of this site shows that as early as the 17th century, during the time of Duke Jacob, fairly active economic activity or disturbances occurred in these forests: charcoal was burned, amber was mined, and in later years, shells were dug for poultry farming, which in a sense provided the disturbances necessary for the habitat,” explains Jānis Zitāns, LVM Zemgale Region Forest Management Planning Manager.

If coastal dune forests lack the natural disturbances they require – such as wind, fire, or regular soil surface disturbances that maintain open sandy areas – they gradually become overgrown, and the living conditions necessary for various plant and animal species disappear. In the absence of the necessary volume of beneficial disturbances, it is desirable to replace them with biotechnical measures that, in a way, imitate natural processes, such as thinning trees and shrubs, controlled burning, and loosening the forest floor.

The aim of the LIFE-IP LatViaNature project is to develop and test innovative methods for simulating desired natural disturbances – the effects of fire and wind – in these wooded coastal dune forests as well.

The seminar was attended by representatives from the DAP, the Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, the Engure Parish Administration, the Engures ezera dabas parka fonds, the State Forest Service, SIA “Rīgas Meži”, and SIA “Sodra”. By viewing the planned work sites in person, seminar participants were introduced to the proposed activities and their significance for improving the condition of the habitat. Representatives from SIA “Rīgas meži” shared their experience in managing wooded coastal dunes, thus continuing the exchange of experience among large forest owners regarding the preservation of natural values that began in November 2022.

In total, as part of the LIFE-IP LatViaNature project, LVM plans habitat restoration work in three specially protected Natura2000 territories: the “Engures ezers” Nature Park, the “Grebļu kalns” Nature Reserve, the “Ziemeļgauja” Protected Landscape Area, and the Zvirgzde inland dune, covering a total area of approximately 100 hectares. All these areas are remarkable for containing geologically determined forest habitats that are rare on a European scale and dependent on natural disturbances: wooded coastal dunes, lichen-rich pine forests, coniferous forests on esker landforms, and old-growth natural boreal forests in dry conditions.