Tampere Approves New Nature Protection Plan Through 2040

Tamperelainen reports that Tampere’s city government has approved a new nature protection area programme for 2026–2040, setting out expansions of city-owned protected land and confirming changes to the Kauppi–Niihama protection area. The programme adds 23 new protected areas with a combined area of nearly 1,000 hectares, according to Tamperelainen.

The largest protected site is Kauppi–Niihama, a popular outdoor area. The city government reduced the protection planned for Kauppi–Niihama from 405 hectares to 391 hectares, and also adjusted where protection applies: planned trail routes in the west were removed, while new protected areas were added in the east. The trails were kept outside the protection zone with a 50-metre-wide strip, and roads, routes, private properties, Niihama’s clubhouse, and the disc golf area are excluded from the protected area. Inside the protected area remains the Soukonvuori nature reserve, according to Tamperelainen.

According to the city, the programme aims to double the area of nature protection on land owned by Tampere. The share of protected land on city-owned grounds would rise from 6.5% to about 13%, and the city says protection will support biodiversity, improve the condition of water bodies, help communities adapt to climate change, and benefit residents’ wellbeing, according to Tamperelainen.