Acta Technica Corviniensis

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ACTA TECHNICA CORVINIENSIS – BULLETIN of ENGINEERINGland abandonment in many of the remote,rural villages, these nature rich systems arenot being maintained and severe levels ofbiodiversity loss are underway.Habitat fragmentation/destruction frominfrastructure development: Attempts topromote rapid economic development hasled to poorly planned and inappropriateinfrastructure development such as roadsand ski developments in and throughprotected areas. Habitats are being torn upand fragmented by rapid growth ininfrastructure development across theCarpathians. After many years of economicneglect, investment has been welcomed, butthe relevant planning authorities anddecision-makers lack the awareness andunderstanding as well as relevant skills andtools to seek sustainable solutions toinfrastructure development and nature andresource conservation.Destruction of freshwater habitats fromriver regulation and flood control: TheCarpathian region is remarkably rich inrelatively intact river systems, brimming withlife and providing drinking water to millionsof people in southeast Europe. However,with the destruction of natural habitats andthe growth of housing development inappropriate areas rivers have become thefocus of the regulation and control work.This is ongoing and rampant throughout theregion despite a growing understanding ofthe role of natural ecosystems in theprovision of drinking water, flood control,recreation and waste water treatment.Indirect threats (root causes)The main root causes of threats to theCarpathians Ecoregion are as follows:Inappropriate rural development: Theregion contains one of the biggest areas ofhighly diverse semi-natural habitat and highnaturevalue farming systems in Europe,which is associated with more traditional,less intensive forms of production. Thesesustainable economic practices arethreatened by abandonment in thehighlands and intensification in thelowlands, which could mean also the lost ofan irreparable cultural heritage and lifestyle.Lack of financial and technical support:Forest protection measures as well asprotected area management measures areoften inadequate because of weak legislativeframeworks and/or enforcement of existinglegislation in the region. The lack of financialresources for the enforcement of existinglegislation leads to illegal activities, includinglogging, corruption, and the inability totackle cultural issues. In many cases, forestand protected area governance should besignificantly improved.Land restitution and privatization: Landprivatization and restitution are alsoresulting in activities that maximize shorttermgain above all else – for example,increased cropping on unstable slopes thatexacerbates erosion, or the clearing of smallprivately owned forests. Forest restitutionalso brings on the scene of forestry newactors – owners and administrators – whoneed to learn and implement sustainableforest management practices.Unsustainable tourism represents both asignificant challenge to the biodiversity ofthe Carpathians, as well as an importantopportunity for rural development for theregion. Increased sustainable tourism inmountain areas is now considered aspresenting significant potential for benefits toboth rural environments and economies inthe future. However, if not properly plannedand developed, tourism will continue torepresent a real threat through overdevelopmentof certain areas, and byopening up access to natural areas thatshould be preserved for nature.Short-term economic gain: The povertysuffered in the region and the opportunitiesof the capital and market opportunities hasled to a rush for short-term economic gainthrough inappropriate development,emigration and rapid exploitation (legal andillegal) of the natural resources of the region.Corruption and poor governance havegreatly facilitated and accelerated thisprocess. Longer-term economic and socialstrategies are struggling to survive andpredominate in this environment. As a result,protected areas have suffered throughout theCarpathians.In 2006 an other group of specialists, most ofthem in charge with the management ofnational and nature parks identify the samethreats. Protected area managers and some ofthe key stakeholders from the existing protected222008/ACTA TECHNICA CORVINIENSIS/Tome I
ACTA TECHNICA CORVINIENSIS – BULLETIN of ENGINEERINGareas have identified the top pressures andthreats to protected areas, during a workshoporganized by WWF Danube CarpathianProgramme. The workshop was aiming to assesprotected area management at the system level,using the Rapid Assessment and PrioritizationMethodology of Protected Area Management(RAPPAM) developed by WWF. For nationalparks the most important pressure and threatidentified is logging, followed by land usechange and hunting / poaching.Landuse change, logging, waste disposal andloss of traditions are the main threats identifiedfor nature parks. Even though loss of traditionsmight not seem a threat that should concernnature conservationists, it is important tounderstand that the loss of traditions is stronglylinked to traditional livelihoods more generally,involving agricultural practices that weresignificantly contributing to the maintenance ofthe biodiversity and valuable mosaic landscapesthroughout the Carpathians.Degree450400350300250200150100500117147Poaching1838793120190192Lan d use changeW a ste disposalLogg ingCumulative pressure607387Unco ntro lled to ur ismC onstr uctions7072103 98 84271608689GrazingInfrastru cture de velopmen HuntingPo llutionCumulative threat9511156675577Hydro tech nica l workLoss of traditions MiningSki resorts56 185 18Commercial fishingFig.11. The most significant threats and pressures tonational parks, 2006, RAPPAM workshopThese threats are worrying by themselves.Adding the unfavourable policy environmentand weak protected area policies, identifiedand acknowledged during the RAPPAMworkshop by protected area managers, do nothelp in planning for a hopeful future forprotected areas in Romania. As a new memberof the European Union (EU), Romania had toextend areas protected for their biodiversityvalues, increasing the surface of protected areasfrom about 8% of the national territoryrepresented by national parks, nature parks,biosphere reserves, nature reserves and naturalmonuments to about 19% with the proposedNatura 2000 sites. But no resources other thansome of the funds coming from the EuropeanUnion are planned to develop an efficientprotected area management system. Furthermore, the National Agency for Protected Areas,established after years of debates, in 2008 is nowon the edge of disappearing even before itstarted to work for the support of protected areamanagers.D egr ee4003503002502001501005008290Poach ing228148146 149140177L an d u se cha ng eWaste disposalLogg in gCumulative pressure100205Uncontrolled tourismC o ns tr uction s72150 1228285 89 79 74 81 83Grazi ngInfrastructure de velopm en H u ntin gPollutionCumulative threat1601121721567244H ydrotechnica l workL o ss of traditio ns Minin g4812Ski resorts4242C omm ercial fishingFig.12. The most significant threats and pressures tonature parks, 2006, RAPPAM workshopThe most important aspects for protected areamanagement and for wilderness protection andmanagement are, of course, related to financialand human resources. The Romaniangovernment is not allocating at present anyfunds for protected area management. Furthermore, protected area management teams arevery young and in need for training and capacitybuilding programmes, whereas there are nocoherent training programmes for protectedarea management.Therefore the question “how realistic is to planfor a European Yellowstone” is very legitimate.2008/ACTA TECHNICA CORVINIENSIS/Tome I 23
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