Community-led Nature-based Adaptation in Tallinn City, Estonia

Key Learnings

• Community participation strengthens resilience: Inclusive public engagement, primarily through volunteer work, involved students, scientists, and residents in building dams and wooden boardwalks. Hundreds of people contributed labour, knowledge, and logistics. This fostered public ownership, sustained momentum, and broadened climate awareness.
• Evidence-based planning enables effective adaptation: An engineering company and bog restoration experts conducted a two-phase water regime study to map ditch networks and analyse restoration feasibility. It informed dam placement with minimal off-site impact: adaptive structures and regular monitoring support long-term learning and responsiveness.
• Adaptive design meets climate and ecological variability: Hybrid solutions address extreme weather and active beaver populations: wooden boardwalks for year-round access and dams for responding to fluctuating water levels showcase nature-based adaptation in practice.
• Restoration brings multiple co-benefits: Once rewetted, the bog could remove up to 18 tonnes of CO₂ annually. Biodiversity is rebounding with around 300 plant and more than 140 bird species, while the site provides cooling, water regulation, and accessible nature trails, all boosting social and climate resilience.

Summary

The restoration of Pääsküla Bog shows how nature-based solutions can reduce urban climate risks and support long-term resilience. By rewetting 47 hectares of degraded peatland and closing 64 drainage ditches, Tallinn improved water retention, reduced flood and fire risk, and restored ecological balance. The site is expected to become a net carbon sink within two decades, with annual CO₂ reductions of up to 3 tonnes per hectare. Over 400 volunteers contributed, making the project a shared civic effort. The restoration supports Tallinn’s climate goals and reflects broader EU and national strategies on biodiversity and adaptation.

Contact

Tallinn Urban Environment and Public Works Department

Email: meelis [dot] uustaltallinnlv [dot] ee (meelis[dot]uustal[at]tallinnlv[dot]ee)