Natural Productive Area

Around 50% of Latvia’s territory is covered by forests, making it one of the greenest countries of the EU. The current Latvian Natura 2000 network has 333 sites (including seven marine areas); terrestrial Natura 2000 sites occupy 12% or 787,729 ha of the territory of Latvia. Nevertheless, data demonstrate that there is a decreasing connectivity between habitats (EEA, 2015). Currently in Latvia there are few plans or activities directly relating to Green Infrastructure, e.g., flood management in cities and Natura 2000 development. However, there is a high potential for GI to be further developed through several existing programmes and policy areas.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development is responsible for the protection of the environment and nature, maintenance and rational use of natural resources and land use. The State Environmental Service ensures implementation of the legislative framework in the area of environmental protection and natural resources. An Environmental Protection Fund - consisting of revenues from the main state budget stipulated by the Law on natural resource tax - is managed by a dedicated administration (the Environmental Protection Fund of Latvia Administration). The Environment State Bureau carries out environmental impact assessments of proposed activities and planning documents. The Nature Conservation Agency ensures implementation of unified nature protection policy in Latvia.

The majority of Latvian forests are coniferous, mainly pine forests. Variety of tree species in coniferous forests is not rich, mainly consisting of tree species. Coniferous forests settle in sandy soils with poor nutrients, therefore they stabilise the landscape as well. . 

Approximatelly 50 km Around Riga City municipal borders there is a green belt of pine forests. The land alternates between sand dunes and marshlands, as well as agriculture lands. There are sandy dunes overgrown with pines along the coast of the Bay of Riga in the North from Riga, large forested areas alternating with agriculture in the East, alternating swamps and forests in the Southern and Western part. 

Forests offer many ecosystem services, such as a carbon sink, generate oxygen, protect soil from erosion and keep pollution out of groundwater. 

For many, forests are a source of food: mushrooms and wild berries are collected. According to law, it is allowed to pick forest fruits unless the owner has installed warning signs. Also, everyone is allowed to pick a christmas tree from the forest. 

Timber from Latvian pine forests is very valuable because of the straightness of tree trunks. For many centuries, timber was used for shipbuilding and was exported.  In 2018, Sweedish forestry cooperative Sodra purchased more than 100,000 hectares of forest land from another Sweedish company  in the Latgale region for a record breaking price of 324 million euros. The price was much higher than Latvian state forestry companies could afford. The forest which was sold is young which makes the deal a long term investment. 

River Daugava is the largest river in Latvia: 1020km of total length, rising in Russia, flowing through Belarus and Latvia, and entering the Baltic sea in Riga. Riga Free Port is located in Riga and stretches for 15km along both banks of the Daugava within the city limits. It hosts both cargo and passenger harbour. The area of Riga Free Port is approximately …“ of the total area of the city of Riga. Riga's Hydroelectric Power Plant (Rīgas HES) is located just beyond the city's southern border, in the municipality of Salaspils. Plant was put into operation in 1974. In order to build Rigas HES, a dam was constructed across the Daugava, creating the Riga Reservoir. Its top is used as a motor vehicle highway - part of the ring road of Riga. This plant is the primary source of electricity in Riga, while Riga Reservoir is a source of tap water for the majority of Riga residents.

There are four major lakes in the Riga metropolitan area - Babites lake (25km2), Ķīšezers lake (17km2), Baltezers lake (8km2), Juglas lake (6km2), - and lots of smaller lakes and ponds. They are used for summer and ice fishing, as well as for recreation.

River Daugava reaches sea and has its estuary in the northern part of the city hence Riga is a delta city. Despite many advantages such as the strategic position of the port, this position causes vulnerability of the region to flooding.

The Daugava River is some 500-700 m wide and 6-7 m deep as it flows through Riga. The water regime of the river is largely dependent on the operations of the Riga Hydropower plant. This is located around 30 km upstream from the mouth of the river in the Gulf of Riga; a fact that itself impacts on water levels. In particular, storms are increasingly pushing water from the Gulf of Riga into the Daugava. Such floods have caused widespread risks to built-up areas, infrastructure and natural areas, including Natura 2000 network sites. The growing trend in floods is linked to climate change.

Riga City Council undertook research on flooding from the storms taking into account climate change scenarios. Flood prone areas were indicated. In Riga, these are areas in the Daugava River watershed, close to the shore, including islands within Riga city limits.

About 10% of Latvian territory consists of peat bogs, swamps, and marshes, some of which are covered by stunted forest growth. Western and southern part of the Riga metropolitan area is more wet with major swamps such as Lielais Ķemeru Tīrelis and Cenas Tīrelis are located there. Lielais Ķemeru Tīrelis is 6192 Ha large, and it is the third largest swamp in Latvia.

Swamps in the Riga region as well as in other parts of Latvia emerged 12000 years ago in the lowest parts of terrain, around shallow watersheds where sedimentation of peat was possible. Swamps in the Riga region emerged in areas in between sand dunes, after water level in Baltic Sea started to rise after the Ice Age.

Swamps were used for peat extraction starting from the 17th century, reaching its peak during the 20th century. Initially peat was extracted using hand tools only and without draining the swamp. Dried peat was used for heating until 1980ies. In the 20th century peat was used as a fertilizer in agriculture, which is also a major use of peat today. Currently peat extraction is limited and nature preservation and restoration is taking place. In Cenas Tīrelis swamp, there are two nature preservation areas, where peat extraction landscapes were flooded and the natural state of the landscape was reestablished.

Swamps carry out many ecosystem services: supply services such as food and water provision, regulation services such as soil and air quality and flood regulation, culture services such as tourism and recreation. Swamps accumulate biomass of dead plants in the form of peat, and therefore are important carbon sinks. It is still popular to forage from swamp berries such as cranberries and cloudberries are found in the swamps in the Riga metropolitan area.

During Soviet times, swamps in the Riga metropolitan area were transformed for agriculture purposes. Amelioration systems were built to drain the swamp fields. In municipalities of Marupe and Garkalne, this land today is transformed into allotments for construction. Sprawling urban development threatens amelioration ditches, these become obsolete which causes flooding in new residential areas.[…]

The Ķemeri National Park was established in 1997 and mostly involves wetlands the shallow shores of the Bay of Riga, an overgrown seaside lake, vast swamps, damp forests and fens, and flood-land meadows. The park is enormously important for protecting plants (25% of those recorded in Latvias Red Book are found in the park) and animals, particularly nesting and migrating birds. The Great Ķemeri Bog is one of the largest swamps in Latvia, and there are other swamps, as well as the Zaļais swamp and the Raganu swamp. The massive swamps are important, too, in the flow of sulphuric waters and medicinal mud. The once-famous Ķemeri Spa was based on the availability of these resources. Most of the cultural and historical objects in the Ķemeri National Park relate to the seashore as a place for leisure and recreation. Educational nature trails, bicycle trails, hiking trails, bird-watching towers and other facilities are available.