[en] The strategy towards politically and economically independent Estonia has created an urgent need to elaborate a lot of problems of tactics in the energy use as well as in the perspectives of the energy import versus export. Today Estonia produces rather a considerable amount of electricity, reaching some 1.2 thousand kWh per capita year. Nevertheless, technocratically-minded people are looking toward to introducing at least one nuclear power plant to our native area of merely 45 000 square kilometers. The Estonia n Council of Ecology is taking the opportunity of considering the alternatives to this proposal, organizing an energetics-focused ecological conference just on the 5. anniversary of the Chernobyl accident. The corresponding data show that Estonia might be able, in the coming 5 years, to rise the efficiency in the commercial energy use by 15 per cent, to reduce the amount of energy-consuming industry, mostly military, by another 15 per cent, and extend the use of wood, peat, wind, water and sunshine taken together by a third 15 per cent. All in all, it turns out that in 1995 there exists no need for energy import on the full balance level. The outlook deserves attention, indeed. (author)

[en] The observations of Tartu-Toravere actinometrical station, performed during the last forty years, show that the transparancy of the earth atmosphere has dec reased by 3.7%, the annual incoming direct solar radiation, by 14.4% and the tot al solar radiation, by 6.3%. The mean annual amount of lower clouds has increase d by 0.5 tenths, but during summer months, by more than one tenth. In spring the melting of the permanent snow cover starts 25 days earlier and the mean surface albedo of the spring months has decreased by 28%. During the last 35 years the annual amount of precipitation has increased from 526 mm to 652 mm, but during t he spring months temperature has increased by 0.65⁰C, but in the spring time, b y 2.5⁰C. As a result, spring comes earlier, it is drier and agrometeorological conditions for crop growth in spring have become worse. It seems to be clear tha t the climate of Estonia is really changing probably as a result of air pollutio n. (author)

[en] The article gives information about the critical and usable reserves of peat, its annual consumption and production allowance, as well as the output in 1996. It is seen from the Table that no increase in peat production is possible in the counties of Paernu and Rapla, as well as in western Estonia unless the exhausted peat fields have been reclaimed, so, after the limit has been released. However, conditions for peat production in southern Estonia are favourable. The low peat production capacity, 1 million t, while the production quota is 2.78 million t, is indicative of the depression of Estonian peat industry. (author)

[en] According to the data of the Estonian Statistics Department the consumption of fuels in Estonia over the period of January-June 1993 was a follows: coal 77,053 t, oil shale 7,981,840 t, fuel peat 127,376 t, peat briquette 42,041 t, firewood 154,511 solid metres, wood chip 55,648 solid metres. The consumption of fuel peat (chiefly for producing briquette) was more considerable in the town of Kohtla-Jaerve and in the districts of Paernu and Tartu where Estonia's major peat-briquette plants are located. The share of peat in the other industries has been less significant. (author)

[en] The total radioactivity tests of local food, held by the Health Care Centre in 1993, showed that it did not exceed the natural background levels. The imported food tests began after Chernobyl accident. The radioactivity of the most of imported food in 1993 did not differ from the radioactivity of local food. The local mushroom tests, held since 1987, in 1993 did not show the higher levels of radioactivity than in local food (did not exceed it). (author)

[en] Estonia is rich in bogs and we have a comparatively well developed peat industry. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the level of research about our peat reserves, because during the recent fifty years Estonia was regarded as only a periphery of the former Soviet Union. Peat is a raw material that allows of a number of various uses. Estonia produces fuel, litter, and horticultural peat, and in small quantities also peat used in combating oil damage. Experiments have been made to produce fodder yeast and plant growth stimulators from peat. Also an original technology has been worked out for the production of active carbon from peat. It is necessary to elaborate a proper conception for the improvement of peat research and the development of an effective peat industry in Estonia.(author)

[en] The aim of the study was to analyse trends and regime shifts in time series of monthly, seasonal and annual precipitation in the eastern Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia) during 1966–2015. Data from 54 stations with nearly homogeneous series were used. The Mann-Kendall test was used for trend analysis and the Rodionov test for the analysis of regime shifts. Rather few statistically significant trends (p < 0.05) and regime shifts were determined. The highest increase (by approximately 10 mm per decade) was observed in winter precipitation when a significant trend was found at the large majority of stations. For monthly precipitation, increasing trends were detected at many stations in January, February and June. Weak negative trends revealed at few stations in April and September. Annual precipitation has generally increased, but the trend is mostly insignificant. The analysis of regime shifts revealed some significant abrupt changes, the most important of which were upward shifts in winter, in January and February precipitation at many stations since 1990 or in some other years (1989, 1995). A return shift in the time series of February precipitation occurred since 2003. The most significant increase in precipitation was determined in Latvia and the weakest increase in Lithuania.

[en] There are 1,598 mires in Estonia with an area of over 10 ha whose peat reserves are of commercial importance. The thickness of the peat layer is 0.9 m. The area of peat deposits of a commercial potential is 538 thousand ha, their peat reserves are estimated at 2,400 million t. Of this, active reserves account for 1,540 million t, passive reserves for 860 million t. In Estonia peat is mainly used in agriculture, gardening and for the production of fuel peat. In 1992 the production of peat was 2.5 million t. Peat production in the future should be directed towards feasibility and versatility. It is planned to extract peat for fuel from those mires whose layer of peat for bedding has been exhausted. Of the possible future applications of peat, the production of the peat-based plant growth stimulator (about 57 million t) seems promising. The respective technology is not complicated either. The peat reserves for producing peat wax and cotton grass peat are estimated at 1.6 million t. Due attention must be paid to the environmental impact of the peat industry. (author)

[en] Biomass can be broken down into three main categories: natural (wood, peat), anthropogenic (organic household waste) and animal based (mug). The calculated biomass resources for Estonia are rather significant and can be a big help in replacing fossil fuel based energy production. It is important not to neglect the biogas energy potential of our dumping grounds. The first dumping ground biogas production system in Estonia is taken into use in Tallinn at the Paeaeskuela dumping ground. Besides of producing clean energy, the system is important from the environmental aspect as well. Lot of wood waste is left rotten in our forests. Change in our logging technology would enable to consume this left over as well. In many places all over Estonia quite a few boilers have been converted to peat and wood waste burning al ready. Unfortunately, due to lack of experience and the needed knowledge, the result has not proved to be as good as it was expected

[en] In this article, peat properties have been evaluated which enables the fields of use of peat to be specified. The competitiveness of peat industry can be increased by reducing production costs, better utilizing the solar energy and guaranteeing equipment reliability as well as organizing optimum technological complexes. Based on the activity of AS Tootsi Turvas it is claimed that the production of peat for fuel and horticultural purposes is feasible. (author)