Roughly half of the world's gross domestic product depends on nature. Environmental impacts make themselves felt through uncertainty in the price and availability of raw materials and resources.

A nature-value deal has been concluded in North Karelia, Finland, in which a private landowner sold a company the nature values associated with an area of peatland earmarked for restoration. The model is based on market principles, offering forest owners a new source of income while allowing companies to invest directly in conserving biological diversity.

Before this deal was struck, cases in which private landowners and companies in Finland traded nature values were extremely rare. The parties to the deal call it "historic."

"The deal opens up the possibility for landowners to earn an income from conserving and creating nature values on market principles, while companies can take concrete steps towards corporate responsibility. The biggest winner from it is nature," stresses Heli Siitari, environmental expert at the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners of Finland (MTK)

The mire that was the object of this deal lies in Kuikkasuo, Ilomantsi, where ditches dug several decades ago have drained the peatland, reduced the mire vegetation and increased the nutrient load in the water system downstream.

"The ditches carry the water away, but trees do not grow there. At the same time, nutrients end up in the lake, whose water has become considerably darker since the 1970s," says Panu Kukkonen of the North Karelia Forest Management Association, describing the initial situation surrounding this deal, which was carried out as part of MTK's LUMA project.

Carrying out the deal took a long time. According to P. Kukkonen, the planning of the area and the mapping of its nature values took place in late autumn 2025, and the plan for creating nature values was approved at the turn of the year. Management of the forest stand was completed in March 2026, while the restoration measures are planned to be carried out in late summer 2026.

The Ilomantsi deal as an example

The area to be restored in Ilomantsi is about 12 hectares of drained peatland. The deal was organised by the North Karelia Forest Management Association, which, working with the landowner, was responsible for planning and mapping the area.

Heli Siitari explains that nature-value deals are voluntary and can supplement the income stream from timber sales.

Petri Purmonen, the owner of the wetland area, wanted to restore the mire closer to its natural state for the sake of both the landscape and water management, and trading in nature values provided the basis needed for that goal: "I believe that this area can now be restored to its natural state, so that in the future birdsong can be heard by the lake; the water in it will be cleaner, and coming generations will be able to visit this place, to pick bilberries, for example."

Panu Kukkonen points out that the project serves as a model for future deals: "The landowner gets the mire they want, water quality improves, and the company, in this case S Group, accomplishes significant and measurable work in the field of nature conservation."

Companies pay, landowners deliver

In a nature-value deal the landowner promotes biological diversity by restoring or protecting an area, and the company pays for the nature values obtained. In the Ilomantsi area the buyer was S Group, which has set itself the goal of restoring 500 hectares of nature values in Finland by 2035.

"The private sector needs to become more actively involved in nature conservation. That can be encouraged through market-based solutions," stresses Nina Elomaa, sustainability director at S Group, noting: "The first areas in North Karelia and the province of Northern Savonia are part of this goal."

Forest managers in North Karelia emphasise the project's local significance. "We want both the nature values and the funds intended for carrying out the project to stay in our region," explains Petri Vehä, director of communications and sustainability at the North Karelia Forest Management Association.

A new source of income for forest owners

H. Siitari stresses that the market platform does not replace public funding options but complements them. As the market for nature values develops, it may become a significant source of additional income for forest owners. At the same time, a new service sector is emerging in which nature values are assessed, verified and priced. Regional forestry associations have a central place in this process, mapping areas, assessing their nature values and facilitating deals.

"Trading in nature values offers landowners the chance to earn revenue from nature conservation and from creating sought-after nature values. Companies, in turn, can take concrete measures to fulfil their corporate responsibility," the MTK specialist reports.

The market is still taking shape

Trading in nature values in Finland is still at an early stage. The Ilomantsi deal shows that such a model can work in practice.

In Finland a large group of researchers has developed a common unit of nature value for a given area, the "nature value hectare", which measures the biological diversity of each habitat. This unit is needed to ensure a transparent assessment of environmental impact. Using the "nature value hectare" as a unit of measurement in trading nature values also helps in practical comparisons of the impact of measures carried out in different places. Without common standards it would be hard for buyers to assess what they are buying, and for sellers to determine what price should be applied to particular areas.

Accurate pricing requires a larger number of completed deals. Individual deals are not yet enough to create a market; what is needed instead is a more varied range of sites across the country.

Long timescales create complications

The effects of nature restoration often only become visible after years, which can complicate companies' decision-making about investments. "We need several pilot projects and experience in restoring different habitats," says Nina Elomaa, representative of S Group. It is also important to find a balance between the supply of and demand for nature values. If the level of compensation is too low, landowners will not take part. If prices rise too steeply, companies' interest may wane.

Part of the "green transition"

Trading in nature values is part of a broader trend that encourages more sustainable use of natural resources through economic incentives. Such trading cannot, of course, replace nature conservation or state support, but it can supplement them and attract private capital. It is also underpinned by steadily growing demand; Finland has committed to halting the decline in biological diversity by 2030, and that goal cannot be achieved without new financial instruments.

At the same time, nature-related risks have become a substantial economic issue for companies. It is estimated that half of the world's gross domestic product depends on nature. "We need the private sector to become more actively involved in nature conservation. That can be encouraged with market solutions, such as promoting markets for nature values and creating support for environmental compensation," stresses Nina Elomaa.

Finland is taking part in the international development of these markets

Markets for nature credits are currently being developed in Europe as well. The European Commission has published what is known as the Nature Credits Roadmap, which aims to establish common market rules. The European Union's efforts to promote biological diversity are based on the EU Biodiversity Strategy, which runs to 2030 and focuses on expanding protected areas and improving the state of nature.

Finland is actively involved in this process, and its recently introduced model for trading nature credits has attracted international interest, particularly because of the great importance attached to measuring and verifying nature values.

"The Ilomantsi project is only a beginning, but its significance reaches beyond one particular place. The project shows that trading in nature values can be put into practice and that it is possible to reconcile the goals of landowners, companies and the environment," concludes Heli Siitari.