Mire restoration within the Sumava National Park, Czech Republic

General

National Id:

Czech_03

Site name:

Sumava National Park

Summary:

The project coordinated by the Ministry of Environment involves a mire restoration program in the Sumava National Park, Czech Republic, The aim was the raise of the water table to a natural (per-drainage) level, decrease the fluctuations, and retain sufficient water in the mires especially during the driest periods. To make it possible, the activities carried out were restoration of natural (or near-natural) mire hydrology, enhancement of peat-forming vegetation and processes, conservation of natural mire biodiversity and involvement of the public into local mire conservation.

NUTS Code:

Jihozápad

RBD code:

CZ_5000

Transboundary:

Data provider:

REC

Source(s):

Ecological restoration in Czech Republic

Restoration of Drained Mires (Å umava National Park, Czech Republic)

NWRM(s) implemented in the case study:

Removal of dams and other longitudinal barriers

Longitude:

13.5186

Latitude:

49.0183

Site information

Mean rainfall:

1275

Mean rainfall unit:

mm/year

Average temperature:

3,20000004768372

Average runoff coefficient:

0,100000001490116

Type:

Case Study Info

Light or indepth?:

Light

Average slope range:

Vegetation class:

Bogs with dwarf shrub, lawn and hollow vegetation surrounded by Pinus xpseudopumilio krummholz, bog pine forests on valley bogs, transitional mires, spruce mires, waterlogged spruce forests.

Monitoring maintenance

Monitoring impacts effects:

Monitoring parameters:

main cations and anions (SO4, NO3, NH4, PO4, Ca, Mg, Al, Fe, pH, conductivity and dissolved organic carbon (DOC)

Performance

Performance impact estimation method:

Catchment outlet

Performance impact estimation information:

Water table measured manually in all boreholes at nearly fortnight intervals. Automatic gauging(at 1h intervals) by piezometers was used in a selected 49 boreholes. Water samples from boreholes, ditches, runoff profiles from drained sites and samples from streams were taken monthly for a detailed hydrochemical analysis, including content of main cations and anions, pH, conductivity and DOC. Runoff from drained sites as well as amount of precipitation were measuered continualy.

Biophysical impacts

Information on increased water storage:

The mean water table rose

Information on runoff reduction:

The fluctuations in the water table were reduced, especially in the dwarf-shrub bog sites and wet forests. The water table beneath Trichophorum lawns remained at almost the same level, but also here fluctuations were reduced.

Water quality overall improvements:

Positive impact-WQ improvement

Information on Water quality overall improvements:

Increased concentrations of PO4, Al, Fe. Hydrochemical changes were found to be much more expressed in wet forest than peatbog. Long-term monitoring is necessary for understanding ecological processes and complete cosystem response.

Soil quality overall soil improvements:

N/A info

Information on Soil quality overall soil improvements:

N/A info

Lessons, risks, implications...

Key lessons:

The target water table concept seems to be a useful tool in mire restoration especially in the case of bogs and various sloping mires. Long-term monitoring including a pre-restoration period of several years is necessary to evaluate restoration success both in mires and adjacent habitats, for understanding ecological processes and complete cosystem response. When assessing hydrochemistry efects of restoration on the catchment level, the various conditions of restored minerotrophic mires and bogs should be taken into consideration.

Success factor(s):

Type	Role	Comments
Financing possibilities	main factor

Financing:

Type	Comments
National funds	Management programmes, Sumava NP and PLA Authority

Barrier:

Type	Role	Comments
Other	main barrier	All restoration measures were limited in time

Driver:

Type	Role	Comments
Legal obligations	secondary driver	Strategy programes
Organisation committed to it	main driver	Authority of the Natural Park
Availability of subsidies	secondary driver

Socio-economic

Costs total:

510000

Information on Ecosystem improved biodiversity:

N/A info

Information on Ecosystem provisioning services:

N/A info

Ecosystem impact climate regulation:

Not relevant for the specific application

Policy, general governance and design targets

Policy description:

Almost 70% mires have been modified by various human activities like forestry, agriculture and peat extraction in the past.

Part of wider plan:

Policy pressure:

Policy requirement directive:

Policy impact:

Policy wider plan:

Wider plan type	Wider plan focus	Name	Comments
		Landscape management programmes

Policy area:

Policy target:

Target purpose
Increase Water Storage
Improved Biodiversity

Design & implementations

Application scale:

Field Scale

Installation date:

2008

Area (ha):

500

Area subject to Land use change or Management/Practice change (ha):

500

Size:

Size unit:

Design capacity description:

19 sites, nearly 60km of blocked ditches

Favourable preconditions:

Former mire

Public consultation:

Design contractual arrangement:

Design consultation activity:

Activity stage	Name	Key issues	Comments
	Environmental Education		Both visitors and local people regularly attend †œMire Days†, which have been organised in the Å umava NP since 2008. In the ,rst half of such a mire day, people help with mire restoration a-er which they can visit undisturbed mires during the a-ernoon excursion. Similar †œMire Weeks† have also been organised in collaboration with NGOs for already 8 years. *ese †œMire Weeks† are attended mainly by young people and students. In this way several hundred people from the whole Czech Republic have taken part in mire restoration

Design land use change:

Design authority:

Authority type	Role	Name
National water authority	Financing	Czech Ministry of Environment
		Administation of Sumava National Park
		PLA Authority

Last updated: 12 Jan 2015 | Top

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Mire restoration within the Sumava National Park, Czech Republic

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