Steady progress: Second Swedish BaltCOP wetland now complete

Nyköpingsåarnas Vattenvårdsförbund (NVVF) is one of five organizations from three countries collaborating to restore wetlands and rivers in the Baltic Sea region through the EU Interreg project, BaltCOP. The project aims to demonstrate how local action coordination, led by catchment officers, can strengthen restoration efforts by creating wetlands that:

• Increase biodiversity
• Reduce nutrient leakage
• Improve water quality

The second wetland in Sweden is now completed and located in the Krämbol outdoor recreation area in Katrineholm. In summer 2023, Katrineholm Municipality began developing parts of Krämbol Forest into an accessible, safe, and sustainable recreation area by restoring old wetlands and pastures. Work is now underway to establish a sixth wetland in the area, co-financed by BaltCOP.

Jenny Herbertsson, environmental strategist and water coordinator at Katrineholm Municipality, highlighted the progress:
“It has been fantastic to see how the Krämbol area has grown and developed. This last wetland will further enhance the area’s attractiveness while playing an important role for biodiversity and water retention in the landscape. We are very happy to create this wetland together with NVVF and WWF.”

Different Wetlands, Different Conditions

The first BaltCOP wetland was excavated in autumn 2024 on previously cultivated farmland owned by a private landowner. The Krämbol wetland is being built on municipal land, in an area with both pasture and forest nearby. This diversity reflects the project’s goal: to create two different types of wetlands under varying conditions and ownership models.

Mats Johansson, WWF and BaltCOP project leader, emphasized the significance: “It’s fantastic that BaltCOP’s second Swedish pilot wetland is now in place. Implementing field projects while developing local action coordination, led by catchment officers, is a central part of BaltCOP’s theory of change. We want to work on these issues from field to policy to achieve the greatest possible impact.”

Strong Collaboration with Katrineholm Municipality

Gordon Lindau, NVVF’s action coordinator, has been involved since the start: “The collaboration with Katrineholm Municipality has worked excellently. We’ve been a strong team with complementary skills. Every wetland project is unique, with different conditions requiring tailored solutions. It’s important to stay flexible and solution-oriented. Heavy rain during excavation was challenging at times. Recently, I even had to climb down into the monk (a well used to regulate water levels) to clear a pipe—it got muddy and wet! No two days are the same, and that’s the charm of my job.”

Knowledge and Experience Become a Handbook

BaltCOP also focuses on knowledge exchange. One part of the project is creating a handbook for catchment officers.
Anneli Carlén, NVVF’s operations manager, explained: “Through our coordinators’ work, we can share knowledge and experiences that we hope others in similar roles will find useful. A key part of the project is spreading the catchment officer approach as a working method to improve the Baltic Sea’s health, together with partners in Estonia and Latvia, using the handbook as a tool.”

More information about Krämbol’s recreation area can be found on Katrineholm Municipality’s website.

Learn more about Nyköpingsåarnas Vattenvårdsförbund (NVVF)’s here.