Forests beyond borders, the name and motto of the project that brings together partner organizations from the region in coordination with the EuroNatur foundation with the aim of surveying and mapping the remaining primary and old growth forests (PF/OGF) of the Balkans through a uniform approach and methodology to continue working on their research, protection and preservation.
In the first phase of the project, with the help of remote sensing, we tried to provide new insight and knowledge about the possible recognition of PF, but also complexes that are close to the classical understanding of the term PF in terms of their composition and human influence (OGF).
Remote sensing has provided interesting insights, but it has also shown that without local knowledge, research in the field and analysis of existing knowledge, it is not able to solve the questions.
We devoted the last months of project implementation to work on the legal analysis of the framework for the protection and preservation of the PF/OGF of our country, as well as connecting with project partners. Like everything in Bosnia and Herzegovina, this analysis is also a complex undertaking due to the existence of several administrative units with legal competences, both for forests and forestry, and for nature protection. The situation is further complicated by the absence of an entity law for forests in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the cantonal ministries pass their own laws. We would like the result of the legal analysis to be a publication that will show a cross-section of the state of nature protection and forestry in the context of PF/OGF protection and preservation. Another important aspect in creating a publication is the so-called PF atlas of Bosnia and Herzegovina, i.e. the publication will be completed with an overview of the PF of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Representatives of the Center for Environment: Aleksandra-Anja Dragomirović and Branislava Dukić, attended the meeting of the project team, which was held from November 11-14th 2024 in the “Plitvice Lakes” National Park in Croatia. On that occasion, we visited the Čorkova uvala PF, as well as the Plitvice Lakes, one of the oldest protected areas in the region. The visit to the PF was complemented by a lecture by Martin Mikolaš, professor of forest ecology and PF researcher from the Czech University of Life Science, Prague.
In addition to EuroNatur and the Center for Environment, the meeting was attended by representatives of the following associations: BIOM from Croatia, Bird Protection and Study Society of Serbia, CZIP from Montenegro, Macedonian Ecological Society, PPNEA from Albania.
