Background Established in 1993, Karula National Park has a tremendous diversity of nature values ranging from forests and mires to freshwater habitats and semi-natural meadows. Many of these are listed on the Habitats Directive, such as the Fennoscandian natural old broad-leaved deciduous forests, a priority habitat type under the Habitats Directive. The avifauna is even more impressive: no less 156 bird species have been recorded in the park, of which 120 are breeding there. 27 are listed on Annex I of the Birds Directive, such as the corncrake Crex crex (around 50 calling males), the lesser spotted eagle, Aquila pomarina (2-4 nesting pairs), and the black stork Ciconia nigra (7-15 pairs). Much of this natural wealth is due to the way in which the area has been managed extensively over centuries. It has never been lucrative, but in recent years it has become harder and harder for small-scale farms to remain viable. As a result, many semi-natural areas, so important for the bird populations, were abandoned and left to overgrow with scrub. Objectives The project was concentrated on the restoration of meadows. Around 10 % (approx. 1,100 ha) of the national park was classified as meadow habitats at the project start. The decline of the nature conservation qualities started already with the establishment of collective farms in the 1940s when meadows were abandoned. With the collapse of the collective farms during the early 1990s, a second and more rapid phase of habitat degradation started. Around half of the meadows were so seriously degraded that they could be restored only with a very large effort, so instead the beneficiary decided to concentrate on restoring the 350-380 ha of meadows with the best option for a long-term sustainable success. The main target of this project was thus to restore these semi-natural grasslands to their original high conservation status and to develop a mechanism, based on best-practice experience, for their long-term management. The idea was to develop results that could then be used by the Ministries of Environment and Agriculture to develop their own larger-scale agri-environmental scheme for meadow management. All this would be accompanied by an awareness-raising campaign, amongst locals and visitors alike, about Karula's natural wealth. The sub-objectives of the project thus were: • To prepare a management strategy to manage 350 hectares of semi-natural meadow during the project period • To stabilise the populations of the bird species corncrake, Crex crex and lesser spotted eagle, Aquila pomarina, by conserving the habitat of these meadows. • To assist the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture in developing a compensation system for meadow management that would ensure management of valuable semi-natural meadows and habitats for the future • To inform the local population and involve them in the nature protection activities • To develop the infrastructure necessary for redirection of tourism in order to alleviate the pressure of tourism on vulnerable natural communities Results Around 250 people live inside the park. Working in close collaboration with the local farmers, the project started by preparing a detailed management strategy for the 350 ha of semi-natural meadows identified as being of high conservation value and feasible for restoration. It then undertook the necessary restorative actions needed to bring the land back up to a level where it can be grazed or mowed. Once this was achieved, management contracts were drawn up with local farmers for the long-term maintenance of the land. If necessary, the owners were loaned cattle or equipment from the National Park in order to encourage them to build up their own stock for the future (offspring became property of the farmer). The project objectives were achieved. In total, 391 ha of meadow habitats were restored by the project, i.e. a 12 % overdelivery with reference to the target of 350 ha. So the effort to halt the degradation of meadow habitats in the national park appears to have been successful. In addition, it became possible to manage an additional area of 260 ha through support from national agri-environmental measures, so in total an area of around 650 ha could be brought under management during the project period. The beneficiary assessed that 70-80 % of potential habitat for corncrake (Crex crex, 45-55 pairs) and 72-85 % of potential feeding habitats for lesser spotted eagles (Aquila pomarina, 2-4 pairs) had been managed in 2004, i.e. a clear nature conservation and Natura 2000 benefit for two bird species considered a priority for LIFE-Nature funding. The prospects for the long-term sustainability of the project results seem to be reasonably good. With the possibility to "loan" livestock over a period of 2-5 years and the purchase of a tractor and mowing equipment which were made available to landowners to use, various incentives were created. The project successfully lobbied for adjustments to the legal framework for national subsidies paid to farmers, so that for 2003 and 2004 it was possible to support farmers with subsidies for grazing and for building fences in meadow habitats. The subsidy regulations also stipulate the grazing intensity on various kinds of meadows, a good example of the catalyst potential of LIFE-Nature projects. With the preparation of notices to landowners, the beneficiary wanted to inform about the particular natural values and their need of management for individual sections of land, as well as which compensatory mechanisms exist. In summer 2004, the beneficiary also assisted private landowners to prepare various documents for the transfer of their land to agri-environmental schemes. The beneficiary considers that it will be possible to link all management of restored meadow habitats to the national agri-environmental scheme from 2006 onwards and, more long-term, to the EU scheme which will start to operate in Estonia in 2007. Furthermore, the project was involved in arranging training activities aimed at involving and encouraging the local community (farmers etc) to take an active part in the management of nature conservation values, and finding ways to launch profitable yet sustainable and nature-friendly methods for land use, tourism, small-scale manufacturing etc. The number of participants was generally up to 108 people per session. Already by the end of project in December 2004, there were three big farms (with more than 30 animals, all started in 2003), 8 farms with more than 10 animal units and around 20 small farms with 1-10 animal units. Taking the project's efforts plus the private initiatives together, the number of sheep increased from 110 to 180 animals between 2000 and 2004, and the number of meat cattle from just one in 2002 to 110 in 2005, whilst the stock of milk cattle decreased from 130 to 90 animals. Karula National Park attracts 10,000-15,000 visitors per year and the number is currently increasing by around 10 % annually. Consequently, the LIFE project invested in facilities for visitors, in order to make it possible to experience the nature value of the site but to lessen damage to the nature conservation values themselves. By the end of the project in December 2004, 11 farm tourism ventures were operating, 10 of them united under a common brand name, "Metsamori Perepark".