Activities in Burtnieki

All year long an air of activity has surrounded Burtnieki: bushes are cleared around the lake near the Burtnieki village, and in the floodplains of Rūja and Seda.

Activities in Burtnieki

All year long an air of activity has surrounded Burtnieki: bushes are cleared around the lake near the Burtnieki village, and in the floodplains of Rūja and Seda.

Every now and then landowners complain about too much work, still unrelentingly they continue to take part in activities carried out within the Latvian Fund for Nature project on Restoration of Floodplain Meadows, which is financed by the LIFE-Nature and the UNDP. Cutting of bushes was started already in spring, but work temporarily stopped during bird breeding season. Work resumed in the middle of summer; in some places meadows that had been abandoned for over a decade were mowed while other sites were cleared of bushes. These activities cover three nature reserves that are also NATURA 2000 sites: the Meadows of Lake Burtnieks, the Vidusburtnieks (Middle Burtnieks), and the Rūja Floodplains. 

Director of the Burtnieki Stud-farm, J. Jurašs, eagerly describes the process: “Over one and a half thousand Lats must have already been spent on cutting bushes alone, and the results are obvious – the lake shores near Ēķinupe are now clear of bushes and visible for the first time in thirty years. Money received from the project did not cover all of the expenses, yet in the future some of the money spent could be recovered from the agro-environmental payments under the Rural Development Plan. All in all, there is a sense of satisfaction about what has been achieved.” Soon a new fence will be put around the restored horse pastures – an action financed by the project. Management plans aspiring to balance nature protection and economic development interests surrounding the areas are currently being developed for the Meadows of Lake Burtnieks and the Vidusburtnieks nature reserves.

Supervisory board of the Meadows of Lake Burtnieks management plan had a meeting on September 29 that was held in the cozy saddlery museum Briedeskrogs. The meeting was attended by 20 people including head of the Burtnieki municipality, M. Rika, other municipal officials, representatives of nature protections institutions, SE Latvian State Forests, the North Vidzeme Regional Development Fund, Development Department of the Valmiera Regional Council, the Valmiera Forestry Service, and local entrepreneurs and inhabitants. The meeting was chaired by L. Salmiņa of the Latvian Fund for Nature who is also in charge of developing the plan. She informed the audience of the key nature values here: coastal floodplain meadows and bird species such as corncrake and great snipe that they host; even the particularly rare butterfly - False heath fritillary found here was mentioned.

Long-term development of this area along with potential zoning were among the key issues discussed; participants were interested in possibilities for expanding campsites, reestablishment of the historical beach near the pumping station, development of hunting, and impacts of beaver activities. Questions on involvement of the stud-farm in maintenance of restored floodplain meadows were considered; landowners were once again encouraged to get involved in restoration of floodplain meadows found in the nature reserve and in clearing of bushes. Next time we will update you on outcomes of the public hearing for the management plan and on restoration of floodplain meadows.