Second study visit already behind us
Between 30th of July and 8th of August employees of the Club and Project collaborators participated in the second study visit aimed to exchange experiences and identify good practices in peatland protection in other countries implementing other LIFE projects. We visited a French project LIFE13 NAT / FR / 762 ‘LIFE Jura Peatlands – Functional rehabilitation of the Jura mountains peatlands of Franche-Comté’ (we encourage you to visit project website) and German LIFE05 NAT / D / 053 “Rost – Rosenheimer master basin bogs” (we encourage you to visit the project website).
We set off in a group of 12 people on the road on 30th of July 30 on the crack of dawn. We drove all day and reached the Jura mountains in France in the late evening. The next day – 31 st July – we met up with our guide – p. Emilie Calvar, who then led us into the field.
Emilie Calvar talks about the first place we visit – an experimental fen restoration.
we lively dissussed on potencial effects of such actions…
Surface of renaturised fen – small scale force to ask about the scale of ecologigal effect of the actions in comparison to economic costs.
In the next part of our tour this day we were guideed also by a representative of the local municipality – Partner of the project, who was telling us about the activities undertaken by the Municipality, not only in the context of LIFE projects.
We were extremely touched by the methods used on this “fen” …
construction of the “dams” were made using such equipment and the trenches were backfilled and covered with pine sawdust and covered by peat gathered from the immediate surroundings of the ditch.
Further the representative of the Municipality took us to the fen reserve and talked about protective actions to be taken on its territory
Our next point to visit was the Natural Reserve “Lac de Saint Point”
The nest day – 1st of August – in the morning we visit renaturisation of Lemme river.
Lemme river in some its sections is inconspicuous brook
On the same day late in the evening we reached Montpellier, where we took part in the 27th International Congress for Conservation Biology and the 4th European Congress for Consevation Biology 2015. During the Congress the group split and each of the participants took part in these sessions, which corresponded to her/his demands. We have been meeting for lunch, during the afternoon while walking around the city and on the evenings with wine or dinner :).
But the main goal of our participation in the Congress was our own poster session (Thematic Poster Exhibition) on the protection of alkaline fens in Poland. Posters can be downloaded in the Files tab. Posters aimed at an international audience to be acquainted with the achievements in the protection of alkaline fens in Poland, their characteristics, the answer why their effective protection is so important and is the subject of efforts that Naturalists’ Club and other entities for many years.
We present the titles of our posters:
- “Alkaline fens resources in Poland” – Katarzyna Bociąg, Magdalena Makles, Dorota Horabik
- “Ecohydrological studies as a base for alkaline fens conservation planning in Poland”- Lesław Wołejko, Ab P. Grootjans, Robert Stańko,
- “Drawa Forest alkaline fens (history, ecohydrology – Miradz, Cieszynka, Bukowskie Bagno) – Lesław Wołejko, Ab P. Grootjans, Robert Stańko
- “Alkaline fens conservation in Southern Poland (specific problems: biodiversity of dispersed small fens)” – Dorota Horabik, Magdalena Makles
- “Water conditions of selected alkaline fens in Poland” – Robert Stańko, Katarzyna Dziendziela
- “Alkaline fens in agrienvironmental schemes in Poland” – Filip Jarzombkowski, Ewa Gutowska, Katarzyna Kotowska
- “Rospuda fen case: Natura 2000 as protection tool against destructive investments” – Filip Jarzombkowski, Ewa Gutowska, Katarzyna Kotowska
- “Recovery plan for Saxifraga hirculus in northern Poland – limitations and first results” – Joanna Bloch – Orłowska, Katarzyna Żółkoś, Elżbieta Cieślak.
- “Liparis loeseli in Poland: distribution, trend, conservation status” – Mirosław Szczepański, Filip Jarzombkowski,
- “Alkaline fens in Poland as a target of Natura 2000 management planning & impact assessment” – Paweł Pawlaczyk
- “Hydro-geological and climatic conditions of development of alkaline spring-fed fens in Poland and their significance for the palaeoenvironmental reconstruction” – Radosław Dobrowolski, Małgorzata Mazurek, Zbigniew Osadowski
suppers al fresco became our ritual 🙂
afternoons we did some siteseeing of the city and its surroundings
On 6th of August in the morning we drove back a long way to the south of Germany – to Rosenheim. We arrived at late night 🙁
On the 7th of August in the morning greeted us our guide – Ralf, who throughout the day, along with colleagues from the LIFE project guided us through places of the project. We recognised the educational materials as extremely informative and interesting.
we started from former peat mine, where as educational materials are still standing columns of peat “bricks” drying in the sun. The mine still operated at the turn of the century!
peat excavation remainings
education center – materials aimed on education of children and teenagers.
educational materials – how to contemplate nature? 🙂
We also invite you to watch footage filmed and submitted by one of our guides – Mr. Gerhard van Eyken. For providing the film we thank you very much! The film in afunny way shows the effects of the German LIFE project.
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