Oil disasters in 2006 proved clearly that volunteers’ work and readiness of civic societies to act for the interests of society (often also of the state) is sufficient. Growing role of voluntariness is one of the encouraging signs of the emerging civil society in Estonia.

Naturally, the state has the decisive role in combating crises. Volunteers, after all, live their own lives. Keeping in mind society’s interests, a volunteer should maybe offer his/her time in being ready to collect oil residues from the seashore, save people and animals/birds from the man-made perils and perhaps more. To give first aid, assuage panic and fight off fires.

A volunteer is willing to learn it voluntarily, but certainly he/she is not ready to abandon his/her active life and work at any moment and go at no cost as an expert to fix something what has gone wrong. Employer could be understanding once or twice, but definitely not more. Indeed, troubles can mobilize: more than a half million kroons were donated to ELF to clear up oil pollution and saving birds in north-western coast in winter 2006. Troubles unite but constant troubles make one unconcerned – thus the rescue system that would be based on voluntary experts, paid both in calls and work, should be really considered.

ELF in cooperation with the state has started to establish such system and more than  1000 volunteers for oil prevention has schooled for now. These volunteers received modern protective and working equipment. In addition, the network for the fast mobilization of volunteers is established. In reality, we have reached the point where some of the existing state functions could be transferred to non-governmental organizations. The situation in nature conservation has really come to this point and the community based nature conservation could in many occasion yield better results than the state and centralized activity.