The EU Birds Directive (Council Directive 79/409/EEC) and the Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC) envisage that each member state must create a network of protected areas (NATURA 2000) providing for the protection of the species and biotopes mentioned in the annexes to the directives. 120 of the animal species and 20 of the plant species mentioned in the annexes occur in Latvia, as do 60 biotopes.

Before accession to the European Union, the candidate countries have been charged with the task of developing a so-called EMERALD network of protected areas in accordance with the Bern Convention, which is in reality identical to the NATURA 2000 network of protected areas. In order to achieve this aim, Latvia must perform the following tasks:

1)      conduct an inventory of the currently existing specially protected areas,

2)       analyse whether in the present situation all the species and biotopes mentioned in the EU directives are sufficiently protected, and

3)      if the requirements of 2 have not been met, then additional areas are to be allocated for the relevant biotopes and species.

 The list of Natura 2000 areas and the relevant database is to be submitted to the European Commission already at the time of accession to the EU. This is being performed within the frame of the project  ‘Coordination of Latvia’s system of specially protected areas with the EMERALD / NATURA 2000 network of protected areas’ (abbreviated to ‘EMERALD Project’), funded by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency and prepared and implemented by the consultancy firm DARUDEC (Danish Rural Development Consultants). Acting as sub-contractor in this project are the Latvian Fund for Nature, which performs the implementation of the requirements of the EU Habitats Directive in Latvia, the Latvian Ornithological Society, which is undertaking the implementation of the requirements of the Birds Directive, and the Latvian Environment Agency, which undertakes information storage and database administration. The project is underway since 1 January 2001, and is to continue until 30 June 2003.

Ainārs Auniņš is the co-ordinator of this project at the Latvian Fund for Nature. Within the frame of the project, five working groups have been set up at LDF, with the following spheres of activity: mammals (co-ordinator Jānis Ozoliņš), reptiles and amphibians (co-ordinator Margita Deičmane), fish (co-ordinators Jānis Birzaks and Ēriks Aleksejevs), invertebrates (co-ordinator Voldemārs Spunģis), biotopes and plants (co-ordinators Liene Salmiņa and Valda Baroniņa).

One of the most important project tasks is the inventory and analysis of the current system of specially protected areas and the creation of new specially protected areas within the developing Natura 2000 areas, which are not protected at present. A wide range of specialists are involved in the fieldwork, since this work must be accomplished over the whole of Latvia within two field seasons.