A new Emerald Network evaluation Seminar took place in Kyiv (Ukraine) from 6 to 8 September, bringing together national delegations, NGOs, independent scientific experts as well as representatives of the Council of Europe and the European Union.

This evaluation seminar targeted the Steppic region (Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation and Ukraine), the Alpine Caucasus (the Russian Federation), the Marine Black Sea (Ukraine, the Russian Federation) and the Marine Caspian Sea.

The aim of the seminar was to assess the sufficiency of the proposed Emerald sites in the above mentioned countries for ensuring the long-term survival of the species and habitats of European importance.

It can be concluded that all three countries have progressed in ensuring the completeness of the Emerald Network on their territories, although work still needs to be done to achieve a fully representative and complete Emerald Network on their territories.

The percentages of sufficiently covered species and habitats by Emerald sites vary from country to country, within the range of 25.5% to 61.5%. Ukraine demonstrates the highest sufficiency performance, specifically with its current Emerald Network being adequate for the survival of 61.5% of the Emerald plant species.

These statistics are very encouraging, but it should be kept in mind that they are only one criterion among many others used to assess the progress of the Network implementation process. Factors such as the territorial coverage and the quality of the scientific knowledge are also important to have an overview of the situation.

The final conclusions of the Seminar will guide the countries’ work as they indicate exactly to which animal and plant species or habitats they should pay a particular attention in the future.

More information on the species and habitats discussed at the event, including maps, can be found on the webpage of the seminar.