Planning improves the protection of waterways

The leaching of nutrients into waterways can be decreased by less thorough soil cultivation, good planning and working during the dry summer period. The drawbacks can further be avoided by using softer methods in the vicinity of waterways. In particular, a buffer zone of 1–3 metres along the shoreline will efficiently decrease the solid particle load, as will the setting up of overland flow areas and sedimentation basins. The beds of streams can be left in their natural state and particular attention can be paid to areas prone to erosion. The load to waterways may also be decreased afterwards by dredging to remove nutrients from the bottom, although disturbing the sediments may cause an even more extensive environmental problem.

With the advent of forest certification, first-time drinage has in practice been abandoned in Finland. Improvement drainage is carried out, but only where drainage has clearly increased the growth of trees. Drainage will not be undertaken if this helps to restore threatened mire types to their natural state.

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