The Křivoklát region will be declared a national park
The hilly region of Křivoklát with its deep spruce forests has enjoyed landscape protected area status since the end of 1978. However, conservationists have long called for even stricter protection of the area, arguing that it is necessary to maintain its valuable biodiversity, says František Pelc of the Czech Association for Nature Conservation:
“The area is valuable primarily because of the rich geomorphology of its terrain and the diverse forests that have been relatively untouched by human activity. Increased protection of the area is therefore entirely appropriate, as the current landscape protected area status does not provide sufficiently comprehensive support.
The Křivoklát Landscape Protected Area, located at the western end of the Central Bohemian Region, covers an area of 628 square kilometers and is home to dozens of endangered species, such as the black stork, spotted newt and red lark , as well as plants. like white foam.
According to the proposal of the Ministry of the Environment, about 16% of the area, or 102 square kilometers, will be transformed into a national park.
The park should avoid built-up areas as much as possible. The only village within its boundaries would be the village of Karlova Ves.
But unlike conservationists, locals are skeptical of the idea of a national park, arguing it will limit their travel and attract even more tourists to the area. František Pelc says there is no reason to worry.
“The creation of a national park will not significantly restrict the movements of the local population. In national parks, there are so-called forbidden areas, where people are only allowed to move on marked trails, but they are defined by the park administration in cooperation with local municipalities.
Mr Pelc adds that in seventy to eighty percent of the area of the new national park, movement will not be restricted in any way, so mushroom pickers need not worry about losing their favorite sites. .
He also says that declaring the area a national park will have no effect on the number of tourists visiting the place.
“We have been monitoring the development of tourism in various protected areas and the number of tourists has increased in recent years, regardless of the type of protection.”
There are currently four national parks in the Czech Republic, Krkonoše National Park, which is the oldest, as well as Šumava, Podyjí and Bohemian Switzerland.
In the future, the Moravian Amazon, an area along the lower part of the Morava and Dyje rivers in the south of the country, could also be turned into a national park.
