Udruge Zelena akcija i Eko Pan, u suradnji s tvrtkom BIOTA d.o.o., od veljače 2024. do siječnja 2025. provodile su projekt Free Korana River. Cilj projekta bio je identificirati umjetne barijere na rijeci Korani i odrediti one s najvećim negativnim utjecajem na bioraznolikost, uz naglasak na mogućnosti njihovog uklanjanja ili prilagodbe.
Rezultati istraživanja i ključni nalazi
Na završnoj konferenciji, održanoj 24. siječnja 2025. u Nikola Tesla Experience Centru u Karlovcu, gdje su uz voditelje projekta sudjelovali i predstavnici Zavoda za zaštitu okoliša i prirode, Hrvatskih voda, Javne ustanove NATURA VIVA, WWF-a te predstavnici lokalne zajednice, predstavljeni su rezultati istraživanja i planovi za nastavak inicijative. Terenski rad obuhvatio je stotinjak lokacija, pri čemu su evidentirane čak 74 umjetne barijere duž Korane – prosječno jedna na svaka dva kilometra riječnog toka. Većinom su to stare, neodržavane brane nekadašnjih mlinica, ali i novije konstrukcije izgrađene u rekreativne svrhe.
Iako prosječno nisu visoke, ove barijere značajno otežavaju migraciju riba i drugih vodenih organizama, posebice jer većina ribljih vrsta u Korani nisu brzi plivači ni skakači. Kroz projekt su analizirani ključni parametri svake barijere, uključujući:
✅ Utjecaj na migracije riba
✅ Ekološku važnost lokacije
✅ Stavove lokalne zajednice
Na temelju tih podataka definirani su prioriteti za buduće uklanjanje ili prilagodbu riječnih prepreka, uzimajući u obzir i administrativne prepreke.
Pravna analiza i izazovi
Paralelno s istraživanjem, provedena je pravna analiza procedura potrebnih za uklanjanje riječnih barijera u Hrvatskoj. Ustanovljeno je kako trenutno ne postoje jasno definirani administrativni koraci, što ukazuje na potrebu za razvojem zakonodavnog okvira koji će olakšati obnovu riječnih ekosustava.
Projekt Free Korana River dio je šire inicijative usmjerene na poboljšanje ekološkog statusa rijeka. Na konferenciji je predstavljen i projekt Improve River Life koji se provodi na rijekama Vrljici i Jadro, te su prisutni upoznati s aktivnostima projekta od kojih valja istaknuti izradu nacionalne baze pregrada na vodotocima i nove politike upravljanja slatkovodnim ekosustavima. Oba projekta dijele isti cilj – doprinose globalnim, europskim i nacionalnim naporima u očuvanju rijeka. Europa je danas prepoznata kao kontinent s najvećim brojem riječnih prepreka – prosječno jedna na svakih kilometar. Cilj europskog zakonodavstva je do 2030. godine osloboditi čak 25.000 km rijeka. Podaci prikupljeni kroz rad na Korani mogu poslužiti kao model za slične inicijative u regiji, a suradnja između ovih projekata može pridonijeti razvoju boljih strategija i zakonodavnih rješenja za očuvanje rijeka.
Projekt Free Korana River je financiran od strane European Open Rivers Programme, uz podršku zaklade Arcadia.
Free Korana River Project: Mapping river barriers to preserve biodiversity
24.01.2025.
Free Korana River Project: Mapping river barriers to preserve biodiversity
The NGOs Zelena akcija and Eko Pan, in cooperation with the company BIOTA d.o.o., implemented the Free Korana River Project from February 2024 to January 2025. The project objective was to identify artificial barriers in the Korana River and define those with the strongest negative impact on biodiversity, with a focus on the possibilities for their removal or adjustment.
Research results and key findings
The final conference held on 24 January 2025 at the Nikola Tesla Experience Centre in Karlovac brought together the project leaders and representatives of the Institute for Environmental and Nature Protection, Hrvatske vode, public institution NATURA VIVA, the WWF, and the representatives of the local community, presenting research results and plans for the initiative to continue. The field work covered around a hundred sites with as many as 74 artificial barriers identified along the Korana River – on average one per each two kilometres of the river course. These are mostly old, neglected dams of former mills, but also more recent structures built for recreation purposes.
Although not high on average, these barriers significantly hinder the migration of fish and other aquatic organisms, particularly since the majority of fish species in the Korana are not fast swimmers or jumpers. The key parameters of each barrier were analysed under the project, including:
✅ Impact on fish migration
✅ Ecological importance of the site
✅ Views of the local community
This data was used for the definition of priorities for the future removal or adjustment of river barriers, taking administrative barriers into account as well.
Legal analysis and challenges
Parallel with the research, a legal analysis of the procedures required for the removal of river barriers in Croatia was made. It was established that there are at present no clearly defined administrative steps in place, which points to the need to develop a legal framework that will facilitate the restoration of river ecosystems.
The Free Korana River Project is part of a wider initiative focused on improving the ecological status of rivers. The Improve River Life Project, implemented on the Vrljika and Jadro Rivers, was also presented at the conference, with particular emphasis on the development of a national database of river barriers and a new management policy for freshwater ecosystems. Both projects share the same goal – contribution to global, European and national efforts in the preservation of rivers. Europe is now recognized as a continent with the largest number of river barriers – on average one per each kilometre. The objective of European legislation is to make as much as 25,000 km of rivers free-flowing again by 2030. The data collected through activities on the Korana River may serve as a model for similar initiatives in the region, and cooperation between these projects may contribute to the development of better strategies and legal solutions for the preservation of rivers.
The Free Korana River Project is financed by the European Open Rivers Programme, with support of the Arcadia Fund.
