The Czech parliament is opening the doors of the Czech Republic’s most prized national park to logging and development, according to Friends of the Earth Czech Republic. The first steps were taken last week towards enacting new legislation that could bring about the end of Šumava’s status as a national park.
Šumava national park, part of the largest, best conserved and species-rich forested area in Central Europe. The 681 square kilometres of national park are a vital habitat to endangered species including the capercaillie, lynx, elk and Ural owl. Its peat bogs and waterlogged forests are of international importance.
The current legislation would remove wilderness zones (areas where human intervention is prohibited) in the national park, and provide major new development opportunities, for projects such as ski resorts, on almost 70% of the park. This would be disastrous for the sensitive ecosystems, flora and fauna of the park, and would bow to heavy pressure from loggers and developers, who promote large scale clear-cut logging under the guise of intervention to prevent the spread of bark beetles.
The decision also contradicts national public opinion, which is heavily in favour of nature conservation. In 1999 and 2011, peaceful blockades prevented logging in some of the key wildlife habitats in the national park. Friends of the Earth Czech Republic (Hnutí DUHA) has been campaigning on Šumava since the late 1990s, has prevented logging in some of the most valuable parts of the national park, and has successfully persuaded several subsequent governments to ensure wilderness conservation. But this work is now under threat following the current U-turn in Czech parliament.
The Šumava national park stretches across the Czech-German border, and both Friends of the Earth Czech Republic and Germany are now working alongside each other to counter recent developments in the Czech parliament. A press conference last week presented success stories from the Bayerischer Wald national park, neighbouring Šumava, which faced the same issues with spruce bark beetle – the unfounded justification for clear cut logging. High profile speakers included Dr. Hans Bibelriether, founder of the Bayerischer Wald national park, Dr Hubert Weiger, chair of Friends of the Earth Germany, Dr. Marco Heurich, a key researched for the Bayerischer Wald national park, and Dr. Jakub Hruska, chairman of Šumava Scientific Board.
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