Behov och inställning till ett gränsöverskridande skyddsområde för fjällräv i Sverige, Norge och Finland

Abstract: The arctic fox has been threatened by extinction in Fennoscandia since the beginning of 1900s. Even though it has been protected in Sweden, Norway and Finland for almost a century, it has not recovered and is still classified as threatened. In recent years, many projects have been implemented with the goal to strengthen the population of arctic fox in the three countries. One of the most recent was the project Felles Fjellrev Nord II, wherein one part of the project was to investigate the need for a transboundary protected area between the three countries. Since 1969 there has been several suggestions for a protected area around the Three-Country Cairn, but the idea has never been fully executed. Our study aims to investigate how regional and national authority figures, as well as experts, in Sweden, Norway and Finland stands regarding a transboundary protected area concerning the arctic fox. A semi-structured qualitative interview study was conducted to investigate the subject, consisting of a total of 13 interviews consisting of six representatives from Sweden, four from Norway and three from Finland. Our results show that a transboundary protected area between the countries was not desirable at the moment. Instead, the focus should be on a well-functioning cooperation between them. The main reason for this was related to the challenges that come with a protected area and that a protected area itself will likely not help with an establishment of arctic fox. The current protection of the arctic fox was considered satisfying.