Ministry of Defense to appeal Nursipalu training area court ruling
The Estonian government has decided to appeal a court ruling which halted the planned expansion of a military training area in South Estonia.
According to the first tier Tallinn Administrative Court ruling, the government is required to conduct a proper national special planning procedure, together with substantive consideration of different alternatives to the expansion of the Nursipalu training area, in Võru County.
The zone would host NATO troops and equipment as well as Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) members.
The Ministry of Defense as representative of the government is appealing.
"As a society, we have today reached the point where we have the responsibility to develop national defense as quickly as possible. The development of the Nursipalu training area is one of those clear needs on moving forward as rapidly as possible. The Riigikogu has also sent a clear signal by amending the law that there must be no delays. For this reason, we find it correct to contest the administrative court's decision and to explain in the next instance why expedited procedure was chosen, and to give all other necessary justifications to explain the government's decisions," Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur (Reform) said on Friday.
Pevkur stressed Nursipalu as an object of utmost importance, from the standpoint of Estonia's national defense.
"The Nursipalu training area is indispensably needed for the development of Estonia's defense capabilities. It is that place where both our own defense forces and allied units train. Expansion is not on anyone's whim, but is a necessary condition, so that we have well-trained soldiers and a force acting together," Pevkur went on.
"We understand that people have concerns and of course we want to strike a balance between local interests, compensation for bearing disturbances, and security needs, but the development of Estonia's defense capability cannot come to a standstill," the minister emphasized.
Seven training areas have been established in Estonia, six of them in northern and northeastern Estonia. The Nursipalu training area is the only one of its kind in Southern Estonia.
Court: Government must conduct a proper special planning procedure
At the beginning of September, the Tallinn Administrative Court upheld complaints from an individual, two companies, and two environmental organizations, annulling the government's 2023 and 2024 decisions to expand the Nursipalu training zone.
The government had made these decisions under the Weapons Act, which allows bypassing the Planning Act for the EDF or Defense League (Kaitseliit) training areas if delays could hamper national defense.
The court acknowledged the need for a larger training area in southeastern Estonia due to the changed security situation but found the government's claim that delays in the Planning Act procedure increased danger to national defense unjustified. The government had sufficient time to process the expansion as a national special plan.
The court ruled that using the Weapons Act procedure was a political choice, resulting in a hasty location decision that prioritized EDF needs while neglecting the impact on the living environment. Key studies, such as the noise study, were conducted only after the decision, so their results were not considered.
Administrative and planning principles require relevant information to be known before a decision, not simply noted afterward.
The government opted to expand the pre-existing Nursipalu training area as an expedited measure on security grounds, with the plan to triple it in size from its current approximate 3,000 hectares area. The legislative basis cited came in a national defense exemption, under the Weapons Act.
While the ministry said the project had been subject to a period of consultation with the three local governments affected, local communities, and with reference to environmental impact, archaeological and noise pollution studies, the announcement of the project met with pushback from residents.
In 2023, the government increased annual compensation for municipalities affected by the Nursipalu training area to €1.35 million, expanded recipients from nine to 16, provided a one-off €10 million investment grant to four local municipalities, and introduced direct support to residents for noise and vibration mitigation.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte
