Sumava National Park in Czech Republic Threatened
02/14/01
OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY
by Forests.org
As with most "natural" protected areas in Europe, the Sumava National Park in the Czech Republic continues to slide into an ever more diminished ecological condition. Its intact core ecological zone was cut in half over the last decade, reducing the originally relatively large blocks of old-growth into tiny and dispersed fragments. Meanwhile, most of the National Park is being heavily logged with clearcuts on the pretext of stopping a natural outbreak of bark beetles. It is time for European governments and the European Union to put their own forest and land conservation policy in order. European ecological sustainability will require a major ecological recovery program that includes conserving remaining natural vegetation and helping it recover and expand through a rigorous forest restoration ecology program. In the meantime, Friends of the Earth Czech Republic and others that have been working tirelessly to support these last fragments of wild Europe appeal for your help. Write letters to Czech government officials to request an immediate ban on logging in the core and virgin forest zones of the Sumava National park, re-evaluation of timber extraction policy in buffer zones, and expansion and connection of the currently fragmented core zones to occupy at least 40% of the park's area. And perhaps most importantly, demand that the Sumava National Park, as one of the last remaining European natural treasures, be managed with more attention to conservation and ecology.
g.b.
RELAYED TEXT STARTS HERE:
Title: Sumava National Park
Source: Friends of the Earth Czech Republic via Taiga Rescue Network
Date: February 13, 2001
Background information.
The Sumava National Park is the largest national park in the Czech Republic. Forests that cover 80% of the park's area have been affected by bark beetle outbreaks during the last few years. The ridges of the Sumava Mountains reach the heights of 1300 m and form the border between the Czech Republic, Germany and Austria. Bavarian Forest National Park is proclaimed on the German side of the border.
As most of European parks, the Sumava NP is divided into three zones that are supposed to differ in strictness of conservation measures. The core zone (the strictly protected one) - only 13% of the park's area - consists of the most valuable natural ecosystems (virgin and semi-virgin forest, peat bogs, glacial lakes). The second zone - 82% of the park's area - consists of human-affected ecosystems (mostly planted Norwegian spruce), the aim of management is their re- naturalisation and future inclusion into the core zone. The third zone - 5% of the park's area- are human settlements and agricultural land.
The most serious mistake step in this strategy was the change of zoning in 1995, when the original core zone (designated in early 1990s and then 22% of the park's area) was reduced (to 13%) and fragmented from originally large blocks, into 135 tiny parts, which are dispersed all around the Park and are not able to survive separately. The thorough majority of thus reduced core zone is created by stands of the natural virgin forest, which should be protected without any human interference.
The forests of the second zone of the Park, which are managed "economically", have been heavily logged during the last four years, with the pretext to fight outbreaks of the European spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus). But the consequences of the large-scale clear cut logging (clearings of areas of many hectares, erosion rills, etc.) are much worse than the consequences of the bark beetle calamity (decaying spruce trees). The beetle does not damage timber, so the administration of the Park removes this timber and sells it. Moreover, the population of the bark beetle has not fallen despite the drastic "protective" logging; it has even increased between 1996 and 1999. As the logging continues, the forests on the national park are disappearing...
The area of clearcuts has risen to more than 2000 ha, mainly in higher mountainous altitudes (1300 m) near the border with Bavarian Forest National Park, which is managed without human interference. Wherever a clearing is enlarged by winds, the timber from windbreaks is removed from ecosystems.
In 1999, the administration of the Park even infringed on the - up to that time strictly protected - core zones and started logging there too. In the same time, pattern of the development of the bark beetle population in several larger virgin forests within the core zones (Trojmezn , Smrcina, Plesn ) revealed that the outbreak is a condition in predominately spruce mountainous forests.
The core of the problem is the fact that the administration of the park is totally under the control of technocratic-minded forest professionals, who believe that they are able to rule the development of ecosystems better than nature would do. There is a similar situation in the Ministry of Environment, which is heavily staffed by conservative forest engineers.
Even if the foresters were not removing timber out of the core zones, the continuous development of the habitats was broken and the whole purpose of existence of the National Park was cast into doubt. In spite of an intensive campaign, in which environmental NGOs were joined by many specialists and scientists from the Czech Academy of Science and universities, as well as by and WWF, the effort to change the resolution of the administration of the Park and the ministry was not successful. Therefore, the most valuable complex of mountain spruce climax virgin forest in the Czech Republic (so-called Trojmezn virgin forest) had to be guarded against loggers by non- violent blockade in summer 1999 (for further information, see www.hnutiduha.cz/lesy/nps/english/blokada/prubeh/prubeh.html).
The blockade was successful in the sense that it saved Trojmezn from logging. Further negotiations between Friends of the Earth, experts and the Ministry of Environment led to a ban on logging of the Trojmezn forest, except of the 200m wide strip of forest along the national border.
However, both the administration of the park and the Ministry of Environment continue the clearing of the other parts of Sumava National Park. No one is able - and it would be bizarre - to blockade logging throughout entire national park area. Therefore, we are trying to mobilise wider national and international support.
Please, write a letter or send a fax to the Czech Minister of Environment, Mr. Milos Kuzvart, the Czech Prime Minister, Mr. Milos Zeman, and the President of Republic, Mr. Vaclav Havel. You may also petition the Czech embassy in your country. Let them know that the devastation of the Sumava is becoming known world-wide as a horrendous case of destruction of an important protected area and park European natural heritage.
Ask for:
Immediate ban on logging in the first core zones of the Sumava National park.
Immediate stop of the clearing in Trojmezn virgin forest border ridge.
Re-evaluation of timber extraction policy in the second zones of the Sumava NP.
Change of the zoning - integration of the currently fragmented core zones and their enlargement to 40% of the park's area.
Personal changes in the management of the park - nature conservation and ecology specialists should be engaged instead of forestry technocrats.
The addresses are:
Mr. Milos Kuzvart
The Minister of Environment of the Czech Republic
Vrsovicka 65, 100 10 Praha 10
Czech Republic
fax: +420-2-67310200
Mr. Milos Zeman
The Prime Minister
Urad vlady Ceske, Republiky, Nabrezi Edvarda Benese 4 118 01 Praha 1
Czech Republic
fax: +420-2-24810231
Mr. Vaclav Havel
President of the Czech Republic
Prazsky hrad, 119 08 Praha
1 fax: +420-2-24373300
Please, inform the IUCN about your letter:
IUCN World Headquarters
Rue Mauverney 28 CH - 1196
Gland, Switzerland
fax: +41-22-999-0015
Please send us a copy of your letters and a copy of any answers you receive.
Thank you.
Yours sincerely
Jaromir Bl ha and Radana Cisarov
Forest Campaigners
Hnuti DUHA - Friends of the Earth Czech Republic
Bratislavska 31, 602 00 Brno
fax: +420-5-45214429
lesy.duha@ecn.cz
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