Participation in international project
Transcarpathian Riverine Forests, Ukraine
(WWF-UK Project Reference UK006702P)
The ancient riverine forests of the Transcarpathians (Western Ukraine) represent the largest surviving refugium of those ancient riverine forests of Central Europe, described in the CORINE Biotopes manual as the: "Most diverse, structurally, floristically and faunistically, of all European ecosystems ........., the great fluvial forests of Europe are reduced to a few highly vulnerable examples". The geographical location of these forests, close to the western border of the former Soviet Union, effectively restricted any large-scale investigation of their biodiversity and sustainable use. Consequently, the forests targeted in the present project have as yet no effective conservation designation Consequently, the forests targeted in the present project have as yet no effective conservation designation.
The increasing incidence of devastating floods in the Transcarpathians has been linked with degradation of riverine/ravine forests of the region. Over the last decade, over 90% of the Transcarpathian population (including indirect impact) have suffered from the effects of these floods, and on three occasions the region has been declared a national disaster area by the Ukrainian Government. The eco-hydrological importance of these forests has been largely underestimated and not recognised either for the Region or for the whole Tisza basin until the recent disastrous floods.
Within the Transcarpathian Plain alone, an area of about 20 000 ha of wetlands has been destroyed over the last century. Furthermore, the present Ukrainian economic stagnation adds to the pressure upon these forests. Illegal logging still is a serious economic and environmental problem for the region. Beside that the Ukrainian Perspective Plan of Forestry Management proposes that a significant proportion of these stands be logged over the next ten years. In these circumstances the country risks losing these unique ancient monuments of nature.
References & Related Links
Europe’s little-known jungles: The riverine forests of Transcarpathia
Popov S. 2004. Butterfly Species (Lepidoptera: Hesperioidea, Papilionoidea) Needed Protection in the Zakarpatska province – Uzhgorod University News (in print).
Popov, 2008. Butterflies of the Transcarpathian Floodplain Ecosystem : Monitoring, Ecology and Conservation. – Uzhhorod: Art Line, 2008.–124 p.
Transcarpathian Riverine Forests, Ukraine
This page was created for "ALEXANOR" (Company for Scientific Implementation )
by S.G. Popov (Last update February, 02, 2014)
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