Land Use, Nature Conservation and Biodiversity in Central Europe

Series editor:

Mariann Kovács

Key words:

knowledge, rural development, rural sociology, sustainability

nature conservation, biodiversity, agri-environmental scheme, organic farming,

non-agriculture, land use, land use policy, land administration,

spatial development, spatial planning

ISBN 963 7372 31 8

ISSN 1788-1064

The CORASON Research Project

(A cognitive approach to rural sustainable development

– dynamics of expert and lay knowledges)

was funded by the EU 6th Framework Programme

Published by the Political Science Institute

of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

1014 Budapest, Országház u. 30.

Responsible for publishing: the Director of IPS HAS

Cover design and layout: Mariann Kovács

CONTENTS

Introduction

Land Use Management in the Czech Republic / Jakub Husák–Lukáš Zagata

1. Introduction

2. Land use management in the RRA context

3. Land use changes and processes: the LIA context

4. The study cases

5. Conclusion

Appendix

Land Use Management in Hungary / Ildikó Nagy

1. Introduction

2. Land use management in the RRA context

3. Land use and land changes

4. The case studies

5. Summary

References

Land Use Management in Poland / Krzysztof Gorlach – Paweł Starosta –Andrzej Pilichowski – TomaszAdamski – Krystyna Dzwonkowska

1. Introduction

2. Land use management in the RRA context

3. Land use changes and processes in the LIAs context

4. The study cases

5. Conclusion

Appendix

Nature Protection and Biodiversity in the Czech Republic / Eva Kučerová – Adéla Ševčíková

1. Introduction

2. Context analysis

3. Case studies

4. Comparative analysis

5. Selected References

Nature Conservation and Biodiversity in Hungary / Boldizsár Megyesi – Imre Kovách

1. Introduction

2. The National Level

3. The case studies

4. Conclusion

References:

Appendix

Nature Protection and Biodiversity in Poland / Krzysztof Gorlach – Paweł Starosta – Andrzej Pilichowski – Tomasz Adamski – Krystyna Dzwonkowska

Introduction

Context Analysis: Natural Conditions and Trajectories

Context Analysis: Relevant Institutions/Actors and Changes

Context Analysis: Objectives of national environmental and agricultural policy regarding NCB

Case studies

Comparative Analysis

Conclusions

Introduction

This collection of papers is the first volume of four anthologies which explore the studies of European Union CORASON research project on Czech, Hungarian and Polish countryside. The CORASON project (A cognitive approach to rural sustainable development - the dynamics of expert and lay knowledges) - studies of changes towards sustainable rural development as a means of illuminating the shape and dynamics of European knowledge society. As Technical Annex of the project says: “These range from the scientific, economic, administrative, and managerial to local, practical, and ecological knowledge, traditional repertoires, trial and error or experientially-based discoveries. We further define sustainable development as a knowledge-based set of practices, within which the expert form of knowledge has been dominant, but to which non-expert forms may make a significant contribution. We seek to identify the dynamics of these different forms of knowledge, and their functioning in relation to economy and society, through case studies in 12 different European countries of rural development projects oriented towards increasing sustainability.” The CORASON aims to identify different knowledge forms used in rural projects relevant to rural economic development, rural civil society, and the protection of rural nature and associated with this examine the concept of ‘sustainability’ in the context of rural development, track the emergence of knowledge society across rural Europe and the impact of these on social inclusion/exclusion and inequality and develop an evaluation of the social, cultural and institutional sustainability of these different forms of knowledge

The 12 participating European countries are Ireland, United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece and from Central Europe the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. ( The Czech University of Agriculture Suchdol, Prague, Institute for Political Science, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest and a research consortium of Jagellonian University, Krakow and University of Lodz). In the four volumes we publish working papers on land-use and biodiversity, civil society and demography, food and alternative economic activities, sustainability and innovation in Central European countryside. The editors’ approach of giving substantial primary source of studying Central European rurality is maintained in the four anthologies.

This book offers an integrative view on land-use and biodiversity in the tree Central European countries drawing on a diverse spectrum of research and takes a comparative approach, considering the ways in which different countries manage land-use and biodiversity. The papers examine national data and more intensively two study areas in each country and provide basic information for comparative exploration of current issues in land-use and biodiversity.

The analyses of present problem of land use and management contains users and knowledge issues, the state of the art analysis with regard to knowledge base for land-use and management and changes of knowledge and practices under the guiding idea of sustainable development. The papers respond questions of evolution of land use management, different types of knowledge combine for rural sustainable development, actors involved in land-use and management in study regions, the characteristic and combinations of different types of knowledge and experience that illustrate land-use management. The reports are structured around three key themes as land use management, rural actors, knowledge forms and dynamics.

The Czech paper states that from the statistical point of view, the changes in land-use are very small despite of privatisation of land ownership. In the study areas where agriculture holds its production functions, as well where the agriculture declines the multifunctional land-use model emerges and authors observed changes in land use related to sustainable development of rural areas.

The outcomes of first case study from Litomerice present the local cultural diversity and agro-biodiversity with strong ecological connotations. The actors of land-use have presented many types of knowledge. The lay knowledge was accord with expert knowledge; the managerial knowledge provided a technical implementation. In the second case study area the Regional Authority is the key actor. The land-use project has a top down character and responds with the economic perspective of sustainable development. The authors issue the conflicting co-opration between civil society and public administration as well the fact that rural societies lack elites who would be leading actors of planning sustainable land-use projects.

The Hungarian paper explores a couple of changes in the land-use. After the fall of socialist system land use and land ownership radically transformed trough land restitution and co-operative act from commonly used land into fully private ownership system. The authors focus structural transformation and shifts form industrial agricultural production to sustainable land-use system as well emerging complex discourses on sustainable rural economy.

As the Polish paper presents spatial policy and land management are based on expert and managerial knowledge what is mainly scientific knowledge that is used to create the local plans and strategies. Among the local residents and administration, a consciousness of the area’s value is growing. Researchers remind readers that today the value of land and work has been altered in a fundamental way and they stress: that continuity and change of land-use and management lies on two dimensions: farmers’ subjective convictions about peasant traditions and rationality. The Polish analysis reveals that majority group of farmers questioning traditional values of land-use. The changing attitude regarding land becomes commodity value and also an asset which can be used to exploit for profit.

The records of natural conservation and biodiversity created through case studies and related literature provided empirical basis for papers. The key to understandings nature, sustainable rural development and knowledge lies on analysis of current problems in nature protection, actors involvement, knowledge deficit, links between structural components of natural resources and rural development activities, the effects of sustainable development discourse on the changing knowledge base and management practices used in resource conservation

In the paper natural conservation is used in a broad sense to refer studies and experiences of maintaining or increasing natural capital. The input paper of this research task encouraged research team to seek evidences of the restoration, improvement, protection and maintenance of habitats, mainly in protected areas or reserves, the protection of endemic or endangered species and their genetic material, and the preservation of landscapes, which is a side-effect of conservation policy and habitat restoration in the context of sustainable rural development and varying forms of knowledge.

The Czech paper presents case studies from two controversial regions – one industrial and another more green region. Having identified the main types of nature conservation they examined typical differences. The first thing that can be said is that the nature protection has its strong rational character in the industrial region when rural communities use it as an instrument of local development. In the more green region where local economy is based on tourism, the approach to nature conservation is much more emotional and lies on local knowledge and identity.

The Hungarian analysis of forms of knowledge in nature protection reveals that natural parks play key role and these state institutions are central actors of land protection. The projects of natural parks protect nature and make a rebirth of traditional form of farming which together with sponsored nature protection and tourism can provide surviving strategies for local farmers and same time improve varying forms of sustainable development. From other side in the top-down model the newly emerging forms of traditional farming and extensive animal keeping constantly lead conflicting situation with actors of managerial, scientific based knowledge and dominant power position.

As the Polish paper stress the examined cases show the strong impact of co-operation and interaction between various types of actors on the improvement of rural sustainable development. Complexity and comprehensiveness are both part of the idea of sustainable development and hinder standardization of agricultural practices and products. The interdependencies can also increase sustainability. The authors of Polish paper identify two key conditions for integrating different knowledge in a coherent policy formulation. The scientific knowledge needs legitimacy in local community that presents its rationale and all types of knowledge have to be involved in different phases of projects.

The conclusion for the future nature conservation policy is that political entities and actors of nature protection need not only focus technical-ecological component but they should also involve networks of interdependent local actors and scientific knowledge.

The editors

Land Use Management in the Czech RepublicJakub Husák[1]–Lukáš Zagata[2]

1. Introduction

There were selected 2 regions, with one LIA in each of them, for the purpose of the study of the issue of land use management. The map on the right shows localisation of the RRAs (light blue areas) and the LIAs (deep blue colour) in the Czech Republic.

(1) The first RRA – Ustecky region is located at the Northwest border of the Czech Republic. The number of people employed in the industrial and construction sector is above the average of the country, so it can be depicted as a rather industrial region. The industry is founded on the plentiful brown-coal fields and other natural resources (such as kaolin, argil, stone). The deposits of coal resulted in a long-run opencast mining, which has been intensively carried out since the late 60s of the 20th century, and which has significantly shaped the landscape of the region. Due to structural changes in economy, the population has suffered from high unemployment rates since the beginning of the 90s. From this point of view, the region has belonged to one of the most troubled areas in the Czech Republic.

Despite the size of the region, there are visible significant differences among the localities of the region, which implies a division of the region into the parts that share similar features (settlement structure as well as their natural and economic conditions). According to what has been stated above, one can recognise three sub-regions. Those are (1) Coal-basin area, (2) Agricultural area, (3) Ore Mountains and (4), Decin area.

This study focuses on the agricultural (rural) area of the region (i.e. the Southern and West-Southern part of the region that includes two districts – Litomerice and Louny) that used to be typical of intensive agricultural production. The LIA involves one of those agricultural districts (namely Litomerice). Within the selected LIA, we are going to study an association of municipalities that actively contributes to the regional development process in the region (respectively in the rural areas of the region). The selected LIA is identical with the NUTS 4 (i.e. district Litomerice), albeit the activities often cross over the administrative borders of the district. Nonetheless, in order to describe changes in land use within the selected area, it was necessary to mark the boundaries of the LIA on the basis of the district borders, because statistical data are available only on the NUTS 4 level.

Basically, there are two reasons for choosing the Ustecky Region (and the particular LIA). The RRA is very different from other regions of the Czech Republic. On the other hand, the region provides good illustrations of the general changes that take place in primary sector and inevitably include significant changes of the land use in rural areas. Secondly, the development policy of this region is heavily laden with the concept of sustainable development and therefore it provides a rich material for the studies on (rural) sustainable development processes (how it is made), including a network of actors involved in this process, and their knowledge that is shaping the notion and practical outcomes of the sustainable development strategies in this region.

(2) The second RRA – Jihocesky region, as its name says in Czech, is located in Southern Bohemia. From the geographical point of view, it is a relatively integral whole; its centre is formed by the South Bohemian Valley. It is surrounded by the Sumava Mountains in the Southwest, the Brdy foothills in the Northwest, the Stredoceska zulova vrchovina (the Central Bohemian Granite Highlands) in the North, the Ceskomoravska vrchovina (the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands) in the East, and the Novohradské hory (the Novohradské Mountains) in the Southeast. There are two basins stretching in the South Bohemian valley: the Ceskobudejovicka and the Trebonska (near the cities Budweis and Trebon). The major part of the region borderline is formed by the border with Austria and Germany (323 km in total). The region also adjoins the Plzensky, Stredocesky, Vysocina andJihomoravsky regions. Its position along the border creates favourable conditions for the effective cross-border co-operation in the field of manufacturing, services as well as tourism where there can be utilised theoverall attractiveness of the region that can offer a well preserved countryside and many sights belonging to the Czech national heritage. Considering the environment, the region suffers from a relatively low environmental damage. The area of the region has always had a recreational rather than a developed industrial character. Thecommitment to maintain the natural environment has been manifested in the establishment oftheSumava National Park.

The location of the region, its preserved environment and its attractiveness for tourism as well as significant changes in land use in rural areas are the main factors for the choice of this region for the WP3. These factors were significantly influenced by political changes in 1989 and the henceforth started deep changes in land use. These changes have continued till present and were encouraged by the Czech Republic accession to the European Union in 2004, especially by the development of the cross-border co-operation.

The district Cesky Krumlov was chosen as a LIA. It is a border district with a restricted access of the general public before 1989, where the change from a less exploited to a more exploited area can be followed. There can be seen different types of knowledge (scientific, political, local, lay, etc.), which focus on different goals in land use and which sometimes become controversial. Therefore, the Jihocesky Region is a suitable and interesting example of land use changes in the Czech Republic, especially due to its historical development.

2. Land use management in the RRA context

2.1. Description of the Ustecky Region