1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Tallinn
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Paljassaare perpetuum mobile project
Short description of the intervention
Paljassaare peninsula hosts the Paljassaare special conservation area and is partly a nature reserve and partly used to accommodate a wastewater treatment facility (ref 3). The leftovers from the treatment facility, processes of urbanisation and cyanobacteria blooms from the Baltic sea are largely influencing the fragile ecosystem of the peninsula through eutrophication. By this, the different cycles and ecosystems (both natural and urban) got more and more intertwined. ‘Perpetuum Mobile’ project aims to rebalance the urban metabolism of Tallinn city with the ecological processes on the Paljassaare peninsula through natural de-eutrophication of the area (ref 4).
Address

Paljassaare Poolsaar
10313 Tallinn
Estonia

Location
The NBS is situated in an area, with clear delineation of boundaries and a specific shape (polygon). The NBS project can also have more than one area location (more than one polygon, situated close by).
Area boundary
POINT (24.688978 59.484735)
POINT (24.697303 59.474906)
POINT (24.709782 59.477041)
POINT (24.707336 59.485911)
NBS area image
Source of NBS area image
Google Earth
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Other
Please specify “other type of area” before implementation of the NBS
Paljassaare peninsula (where the project aims to open up the closed-in marshland and isolate the original marshlands hydrologically from the main land to form Suur Paljassaare and Vaike Paljassaare) (ref. 4)
Website of the intervention
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTXkeBJRzyc
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
2017
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
unknown
End date of the intervention
unknown
Present stage of the intervention
Unknown
Goals of the intervention
1. Opening up the closed-in marshland
2. Eutrophication of the marshland will be put to a halt and ecological values will be preserved
3. Suur-Paljasaare will become an isolated bird reserve, an ornithological park on a pan-European scale
4. Väike-Paljassaare will be transformed into a productive bio-educational island with recreational functions
5. The island is intended to function as a landscape machine that over time will de-eutrophicate the area
6. The leftovers from the wastewater treatment facility are used to fertilise tree and crop plantations on the island
7. The output of the plantations is used to feed and green the city of Tallinn and give a new range of spatial and functional experiences
8. A huge bio-digester is to be implemented: This facility transforms the cyanobacteria blooms (algea) from the Baltic sea to bio-gas for the city.
(ref. 4)
Quantitative targets
unknown
Monitoring indicators defined
unknown
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Coastal resilience and marine protection (SDG 14)
Marine and coastal biodiversity protection
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Habitat and biodiversity restoration
Green space creation and/or management
Water management (SDG 6)
Improvements to water quality
Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Sustainable consumption
Sustainable production
Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets?
Manage biological resources for conservation and sustainable use
What types of restoration goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?
Species-focused
Ecosystem-focused
What activities are implemented to realize the restoration goals and targets?
Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
Restore species (native, endangered, or unspecified)
Restore valued species
Clear and control invasive alien species
Implementation activities
1. Opening up the closed-in marshland. 2. Eutrophication of the marshland will be put to a halt and ecological values will be preserved. 3. Suur-Paljasaare will become an isolated bird reserve, an ornithological park on a pan-European scale. 4. Väike-Paljassaare will be transformed into a productive bio-educational island with recreational functions. 6. The leftovers from the wastewater treatment facility are used to fertilise tree and crop plantations on the island. 7. The output of the plantations is used to feed and green the city of Tallinn and give a new range of spatial and functional experiences. 8. A huge bio-digester is to be implemented (ref. 4)
Type of NBS project
Coastal landscape management or protection
Ecological restoration of ecosystems
Protection of natural ecosystems
Monitoring and maintenance of habitats and/or biodiversity
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Blue infrastructure
Coastlines
Coastal wetland, mangroves and salt marshes
Please specify "other urban green space connected to grey infrastructure"
The leftovers from the waste water treatment facility are used to fertilise tree and crop plantations on the island (ref 4 ) A huge bio-digester is to be implemented: This facility transforms the cyanobacteria blooms (algea) from the Baltic sea ito bio-gas for the city. The digester forms an artificial hill landscape (ref. 4)
Vegetation Type
Trees
Please specify how many trees were planted
Unknown
Amenities offered by the NBS
Unknown
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Provisioning services
Food for human consumption (crops, vegetables)
Raw materials
Water (surface and ground water for drinking and non-drinking purposes)
Regulating services
Coastal protection
Water purification / filtration
Habitat and supporting services
Habitats for species
Pest and disease control
Cultural services
Aesthetic appreciation
Recreation
Intellectual interactions (scientific and / or educational)
Physical and experiential interactions with plants and animals
Scale
Spatial scale
Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Citizens or community groups
Governance
Governance arrangements
Led by non-government actors
Non-government actors
Private sector/Corporate/Business
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
A project envisioned by private architects and urban designers for a city-level competition (ref. 1, 3). Tallinn Architecture Biennale Vision Competition “Re-metabolizing Paljassaare” invited architects, scientists and artists from across the world to define a new urbanity for the unique Paljassaare Peninsula in Tallinn (ref. 3)
Key actors - initiating organization
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Citizens or community group
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Please specify other participatory methods
As this project us a competition entry; community participation is evident as ideas are sourced from the larger community (ref 3)
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Other
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Unknown
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Voluntary (spontaneous)
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Please specify other vegetation type




Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Co-finance for NBS
Unknown
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
Unknown
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
Unknown
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
Unknown
Source(s) of funding
Unknown
Type of fund(s) used
Unknown
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Business models
Risk reduction model
Urban offsetting model (biodiversity or water)
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Private non-for-profit actor (e.g. NGO, foundation)
Citizens / local communities
Type of innovation
Technological
Process innovation
Social
Cultural innovation
Please specify technological innovation
To rebalance the urban metabolism of Tallinn city with the ecological processes on the Paljassaare peninsula, the island is intended to function as a landscape machine that over time will de-eutrophicate the area. (ref 1) A huge bio-digester is to be implemented: This facility transforms the cyanobacteria blooms (algea) from the Baltic sea ito bio-gas for the city. The digester forms an artificial hill landscape (ref 1) The leftovers from the waste water treatment facility are used to fertilise tree and crop plantations on the island. (Ref 1)
Please specify social innovation
Väike-Paljassaare will be transformed into a productive bio-educational island with recreational functions (Ref 1)
Novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Water management and blue areas
Improved water quality
Green space and habitat
Increased green space area
Reduced biodiversity loss
Increased number of species present
Description of environmental benefits
Since no information is publicly available on the project implementation and completion (no data available after the project envisioned' period), environmental, social and economic benefits can't be known.
Intended impacts of the project are:
1. opening up the closed-in marshland once again and recreate the three landforms – one peninsula and two islands (ref. 4)
2. the eutrophication of the marshland will be put to a halt and ecological values will be preserved and expanded (ref. 4)
3. Suur-Paljasaare will become an isolated bird reserve, an ornithological park on a pan-European scale (ref. 4)
5. The island is intended to function as a landscape machine that over time will de-eutrophicate the area (ref. 4)
6. The leftovers from the wastewater treatment facility are used to fertilise tree and crop plantations on the island. The output of the plantations is used to feed and green the city of Tallinn while at the same time giving a new range of spatial and functional experiences. (ref. 4)
Economic impacts
Unknown
Description of economic benefits
Unknown
Social and cultural impacts
Health and wellbeing
Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
Education
Increased support for education and scientific research
Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
Description of social and cultural benefits
Since no information is publicly available on the project implementation and completion (no data available after the project envisioned' period), environmental, social and economic benefits can't be known.
Intended impacts of the project are
1. Väike-Paljassaare will be transformed into a productive bio-educational island with recreational functions (ref. 4)
Type of reported impacts
Expected impacts
Indicators
Unknown
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Unknown
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
No information available
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
No data was available on the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic on the implementation stage of the project as well as on the NBS area itself.
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
No evidence in public records
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Not applicable
Unknown
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
a youtube video on the project proposal
Tallinn Architecture Biennale
List of references
1. Nohnik. (n.d.) Complete project overview NOHNIK. Available at: https://nohnik.nl/en/projecten/project-overview/ (Accessed: 20 July 2020)
2. Tallinn City Council. (n.d.) Nature and biodiversity. Available at: http://www.tallinn.ee/Indicator-4_Nature_Tallinn (Accessed: 20 July 2020)
3. Tallinn Architecture Biennale. (2017). TAB 2017 Vision Competition “Re-metabolizing Paljassaare” won by proposal titled ICAP. Available at: http://2017.tab.ee/tab-2017-vision-competition-re-metabolizing-paljassaare-won-by-proposal-titled-icap/ (Accessed: 20 July 2020)
4. Perpetuum Mobile (Paljassaare - Tallinn, Estonia). (2017). Youtube Video. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTXkeBJRzyc (Accessed: 20 July 2020)
Comments and notes
Pictures of the NBS
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/paljassaare%20perpetuum%20mobile.jpg
Public Images
Perpetuum Mobile (Paljassaare - Tallinn, Estonia)
Perpetuum Mobile (Paljassaare - Tallinn, Estonia)
Perpetuum Mobile (Paljassaare - Tallinn, Estonia)