[ad_1]
These are the Zvezda and Rača sites in an area of about 2,000 hectares in the first most strictly guarded protection zone of the National Park. Parallel to the first Serbian candidacy for the prestigious list, the year was marked by “Zlatiborization”, an increasingly intensive construction in the less defended parts of the mountain, for which many institutions with interlocking competencies face great challenges to preserve Tara .
– The Zvezda area contains one of the rare remaining habitats of Pančić firs in the Drina river canyon. It is a relict forest community of beech, fir and fir trees. The Rača area includes a sub-association of relict beech and walnut forests and is located in the lower part of the Rača river gorge, explained Milica Tomić, deputy director of the Tara National Park.
– The initiative is led by the Institute for the Protection of Nature of Serbia in order that the first natural reserves of our country receive a unique type of international protection, within the Convention on the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage.
In this way, Serbia would join a group of 12 other European countries, in a list that currently includes some 80 intact beech forests. The overall objective is to preserve the endemic forest ecosystems important to the European continent, so that future generations of humanity can enjoy them.
– If our nomination will be accepted, it will be known in mid-2021 – added Tomić. – The evaluation of the nomination for inscription on the Natural World Heritage List is carried out by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as the official advisory body of the World Heritage Committee.
The areas proposed for inclusion in the UNESCO list are in the first degree protection zone, and the nomination is an indicator that these parts have been preserved in the best possible way and is a confirmation of a job well done in the Tara National Park, which will turn 40 years of existence next year.
However, there are problems in areas with a lower level of protection, where construction is permitted according to current legislation, as well as according to the spatial plans of the municipality of Bajina Basta and the city of Uzice. It happened that the corona pandemic and the increasing air pollution in cities “opened the eyes” of many and the appetite for the natural beauties of Serbia, especially to builders with a deeper pocket.
Intact beech forest in Tara, photo by NP TARA
– You notice a higher intensity of construction, it is better seen in the Zaovine area. The legislation enables construction and inspection services do not seem to have sufficient capacity to control compliance with the prescribed conditions, they point out in the National Park.
The builders’ “targets” are the Kaluđerske bare and Mitrovac tourist destinations, but also other places with a lower level of protection.
IN THE SOCIETY OF THE SELECTED
NEXT to Tara, the “Fruška gora” and “Kopaonik” national parks are also candidates for the World Natural Heritage List. More precisely, the localities were designated in the strict protection regime: Papratski do and Ravne in the NP “Fruška gora” and “Kozja stena” in the NP “Kopaonik”. The last time this list was expanded was in 2017, and so far it has included the forest areas of the Carpathians, the forests of Slovakia, Ukraine, Germany … It is a society of the chosen and special, in which they have found so far 12 countries.
This problem could not remain invisible to the authorities of the municipality of Bajina Basta. New rules for construction have recently been adopted at Tara, with clearly defined details.
Photo NP TARA
A strict control of the project documentation has been introduced, the construction heritage of this area must be respected during construction, with the mandatory use of natural materials.
– For example, the plastered surface of buildings must not exceed 50 percent and must be white or light pastel colors, while at least half of the surface must be covered with wood and stone – explained in the Municipality of Bajina Enough.
Consult international experts with hosts of NP “Tara”, Photo NP NP TARA
On paper, much has been arranged to avoid the urbanization of parts of Tara with less degree of protection. In practice, good wishes can be frustrated by the old local pain: it is a matter of mixed competencies and responsibilities, divided between the two local governments and between local and national institutions.
Follow us through iOS and Android apps
[ad_2]
