Nature protection and biodiversity - Outlook 2020 (Lithuania)

Like the rest of Europe, Lithuania is likely to face further loss of biodiversity, as well as quantitative and qualitative changes in its structure in the future. This may result from climate change and global anthropogenic activities or from the loss of particularly sensitive habitats induced by anthropogenic activities. The number of invasive species that spread with the transport vector is likely to grow.

One of the main objectives of the National Sustainable Development Strategy is to increase the forest area to 34–35% of the country’s territory by 2020, and in 2007 this indicator was already 32.8 %, exceeding the forest area growth rate. It  therefore seems likely that the set target will be achieved.

Lithuania is consistently developing the Natura 2000 network and formalising the status of previously designated areas and it plans to increase the area of designated sites. In addition, a list of areas important for the conservation of potential key habitats has been approved. Consequently, following the validation of all sites previously identified and those being planned in the immediate future, the territory of protected areas should reach 18 % of Lithuanian territory, or the limit set in the National Strategy for Sustainable Development. Once a clear and adequate system has been developed for restricting farming in protected areas, the pressure on protected areas should decrease.

On the other hand, inadequate environmental regulation of the processes of land use change, land use, property restitution and construction may increase the pressure on those areas which are most valuable in terms of the natural landscape. The lack of public awareness of the need to protect unique natural values and the unjustified interests of private land managers or local communities may slow down the establishment of the network of Natura 2000 sites, or reduce the possibility to preserve valuable species and habitats for which the sites are established.