The process of creating Biosphere Reserves- An ... - Naturvårdsverket

SWEDISH ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY REPORT 6563
The process of creating Biosphere Reserves
3.5 Östra Vätterbranterna
(The Eastern Slopes of Lake Vättern)
Eastern Slopes Of Lake Vättern differs from the other candidatures, as the area has
not yet been designated as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. The application to
UNESCO was submitted in September 2011 by the Swedish Government, and the
decision will be taken at the ICC meeting in July 2012. A positive advance notification
has come from the Advisory Committee and a formal decision will be taken
in July 2012.
Approximately 40,000 people live within the Biosphere Reserve and the area comprises
104,000 hectares of which the core area comprises about 2,120 hectares (just
over 2% of the total area). The area is made up party of Lake Vättern and Visingsö
Island and partly of the small-scale forest and farming landscape east of the lake,
along with the urban areas of Huskvarna, Ölmsta and Gränna. The proposed Biosphere
Reserve includes a number of protected areas (28 Natura 2000 Areas, 16
Nature Reserves, 23 Habitat Protection Areas and 22 Wildlife Conservation Areas)
and a further 14 Nature Reserves are being established. Large parts of the area are
also singled out as being of national interest for Wildlife Conservation (39,600
hectares) and Cultural Heritage (6,500 hectares) respectively. The Eastern Slopes
of Lake Vättern comprises for the most part, privately owned land divided between
1,000 private landowners. (Östra Vätterbranterna 2011)
3.5.1 The Origin
The Origin of the Biosphere candidature Östra Vätterbranterna ( Eastern Slopes of
Lake Vättern) can be traced to a conflict between the non-profit making nature
conservationists (represented by Gränna Forest Protection Group with the support
of the World Wildlife Fund [WWF] and the Society for Nature Conservation), the
authorities (The County Administrative Board in Jönköping County and the Swedish
Forest Agency) and private landowners (represented by Södra Forest Owners
and The Federation of Swedish Farmers) during the 1990s. The conflict, among
other things, concerned the inventory of key forest habitats and the establishment
of a Nature Reserve. In order to deal with the conflict, the different groups united
behind a common project named just Östra Vätterbranterna (Eastern Slopes of
Lake Vättern) in the year 1998. The project was initially financed by Jönköping
Municipality and the WWF. From the start there was a forum for dealing with
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