1 Institute of Landscape Ecology, Slovak Academy of Sciences
DOI:
10.4316/GEOREVIEW.2013.22.1.71
Pages:
1 - 10
Abstract:
In the last period landscape protection, its representative types
more and more comes to the limelight. In October 2000 the European
Landscape Convention - also known as the Florence Convention was
adopted. The aims of this Convention are to promote landscape protection,
management and planning, and to organise European co-operation on
landscape issues. Contracting states ought to analyse the landscape types
on the whole area of their countries, to analyse their features, record their
changes, specify motive power and pressure forming them and assess
selected types with respect to special values attributed by engaged
participants and inhabitants. Knowledge and identification of single
landscape types enable the intensification of care of diversity of single
landscape types and landscape biodiversity. It is an unavoidable condition in
the strategic planning process and effective protection of regionally special
landscape. Slovakia signed ELC in 2005 and became an active participant in
its implementation. The Institute of the Landscape Ecology of Slovak
Academy of Sciences elaborated methodology for specification and
evaluation of the representative landscape types of Slovakia (RLTS). RLTS are
defined as homogeneous units considering the landscape character,
functions and current land-use. GIS (Geographical Information Systems) tool
was used to create RLTS, in particular by overlaying of abiotic landscape
structure (type of relief, quaternary deposits, climatic regions, and soil types)
and land-cover map (CORINE Land Cover 2006 - CLC) at national scale. This
process yielded to a patched map of homogeneous areas, which were
further interpreted, generalized, and regionalized to a final map of RLTS.
Landscape types of Slovakia were defined by the synthesis of the mentioned
maps. Totally there were identified 126 basic landscape types. Each
landscape type represents unique combination of land-use in different
abiotic conditions and gives the unique environment for nature development
In the second stage typing rare and unique landscape types of Slovakia have
been marked. Following, all RLTS were evaluated from the point of viewnature protection and recent degradation and threats. The main changes of
RLTS were identified, taken into account also key driving forces of landscape
changes and consequent pressures on the landscape. The final step included
preparation of management proposal with aim to maintain all representative
landscape types and to secure their sustainable development and
protection.
Keywords:
Landscape typisation, representative landscape types, rare and unique landscape types