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WATER EDUCATION AND INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENTVia MilitarisSerbia’s Via Militaris is the focus of a project to connect archaeological andhistorical heritage with water resourcesSource: Faculty of Civil Engineering, BelgradeEcological status in river basins depends on population occupanciesand the human activities practiced. Urban areas and industrial centresalter natural conditions in the basins and could put extensive pressureon the environment. Urbanization is an emerging process induced bymany causes such as job opportunities, young people seeking education,social status, medical security and cultural facilities. Due to theoccupancies of large areas with urban amenities, more farmland andwildlife habitats are displaced by impervious surfaces. At the sametime, increases in pollution sources such as soot, industrial fumes andmotor vehicle exhaust gases directly impact all environmental aspects,such as water and air pollution, the water cycle, flora and fauna.Current knowledge and practice is mainly implementedin large urban areas where educated people liveand access to information is easy. Even in large citieswhere urban sprawl occurs, especially during turbulenttimes when uncontrolled urbanization phenomenatake place, a lack of proper planning and constructionof infrastructure systems – particularly sanitation –means that the implementation of regulations related towater leaves a lot to be desired. The Urban Waste WaterTreatment Directive 2 has been implemented despitedifficulties due to economy problems, underbuilt waterand sewage systems and especially a complete lack ofwastewater treatment plants.On the other hand, vast populations live in rural areasor small towns where procedures and standards appliedin everyday practice belong to traditional ways of livingrather than to up-to-date accomplishments and regulations.If we take for an example the situation in Serbia,more than 95 per cent of water professionals live in fivelarge cities – Belgrade, Nis, Novi Sad, Kragujevac andSubotica – according to data from the Serbian Chamberof Engineers. Governmental and intergovernmental institutionsand projects should foster a policy of permanenteducation, employment opportunities and technicalimprovement in less developed regions in order to createthe conditions for environment preservation.European directives are quite restrictive in termsof further development that would be of benefit forthe environment. In that regard, the implementationof directives should be extended to sustainable use ofwater through irrigation, energy production and navigation,but also through recreational use of water such aswater sports, boating and so on.Image: Tamara Jankovic, 2012The River Temska (left) and Stara Mountain (right) in Eastern Serbia are areas with abundant water resources, flora and fauna[ 124 ]