Page 116 - Koderman, Miha, and Vuk Tvrtko Opačić. Eds. 2020. Challenges of tourism development in protected areas of Croatia and Slovenia. Koper, Zagreb: University of Primorska Press, Croatian Geographical Society
P. 116
challenges of tourism development in protected areas of croatia and slovenia
Therefore, it is also necessary to consider possible scenarios in relation
to the protection of protected areas and individual natural assets, and to
provide appropriate long-term sustainable measures for the management
thereof.
A specific case is the area of Škocjanski zatok Nature Reserve, which
is filled with fresh water from an artificially excavated overflow channel
(called Ara) of the Rižana River. The inflow of freshwater to the wetland
area is vital to maintain the dynamics of the periodically flooded and dry
areas of the reserve. Reduced volume of water in the Rižana River could
also mean that there would not be enough water to properly flood the east-
ern part of the wetland, particularly in cases where spring discharges are
significantly reduced. Since the areas of the wetland represent a retention
area in the event of flooding, protecting human activities taking place in
the surroundings, a certain threat to the area also comes from the rising
frequency of extreme weather events (Lipej, 2019).
Climate change is also reflected in sea level rise, which is a global phe-
nomenon. During strong high tides, which typically occur in the autumn/
winter period while there is either a full or new moon and with the siroc-
co wind pushing water towards the Gulf of Trieste, the sea level rises sharp-
ly and the sea overflows the lower-lying parts of the coast. Sea flooding oc-
curs when the sea level rises 82 cm above the mean value. Normal flooding
of the lowest-lying areas takes place a few times a year and does not cause
damage. In the 1961–2015 period, there were 8 to 31 floods per year, and
482 floods during the whole period in question (Slovenian Environmental
Agency, 2019d). Small-scale or large-scale sea flooding occurred before the
tide gauge station in Koper was put into operation, and available sourc-
es show that the most exposed areas were the low-lying coastal zones at
Sečovlje, Piran, and Strunjan (Kolega, 2005). Monitoring of sea levels in
Slovenia reveals that in the last 50 years the sea level has risen by 10 cm
and has been rising at a rate of 1.7 mm per year (Fig. 5), while in the last
20 years the rate has been even higher than the European and global aver-
ages (Regional Obala, 2019a). IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change) scientists estimate that sea levels will rise globally by 0.5 to 1 m by
2100 (Church et al., 2013).
Sea level rise is already being reflected in the introduction of non-na-
tive species characteristic of warm seas (Lipej and Kerma, 2012), and cli-
mate change will influence the development of terrestrial ecosystems over
the long run.
114
Therefore, it is also necessary to consider possible scenarios in relation
to the protection of protected areas and individual natural assets, and to
provide appropriate long-term sustainable measures for the management
thereof.
A specific case is the area of Škocjanski zatok Nature Reserve, which
is filled with fresh water from an artificially excavated overflow channel
(called Ara) of the Rižana River. The inflow of freshwater to the wetland
area is vital to maintain the dynamics of the periodically flooded and dry
areas of the reserve. Reduced volume of water in the Rižana River could
also mean that there would not be enough water to properly flood the east-
ern part of the wetland, particularly in cases where spring discharges are
significantly reduced. Since the areas of the wetland represent a retention
area in the event of flooding, protecting human activities taking place in
the surroundings, a certain threat to the area also comes from the rising
frequency of extreme weather events (Lipej, 2019).
Climate change is also reflected in sea level rise, which is a global phe-
nomenon. During strong high tides, which typically occur in the autumn/
winter period while there is either a full or new moon and with the siroc-
co wind pushing water towards the Gulf of Trieste, the sea level rises sharp-
ly and the sea overflows the lower-lying parts of the coast. Sea flooding oc-
curs when the sea level rises 82 cm above the mean value. Normal flooding
of the lowest-lying areas takes place a few times a year and does not cause
damage. In the 1961–2015 period, there were 8 to 31 floods per year, and
482 floods during the whole period in question (Slovenian Environmental
Agency, 2019d). Small-scale or large-scale sea flooding occurred before the
tide gauge station in Koper was put into operation, and available sourc-
es show that the most exposed areas were the low-lying coastal zones at
Sečovlje, Piran, and Strunjan (Kolega, 2005). Monitoring of sea levels in
Slovenia reveals that in the last 50 years the sea level has risen by 10 cm
and has been rising at a rate of 1.7 mm per year (Fig. 5), while in the last
20 years the rate has been even higher than the European and global aver-
ages (Regional Obala, 2019a). IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change) scientists estimate that sea levels will rise globally by 0.5 to 1 m by
2100 (Church et al., 2013).
Sea level rise is already being reflected in the introduction of non-na-
tive species characteristic of warm seas (Lipej and Kerma, 2012), and cli-
mate change will influence the development of terrestrial ecosystems over
the long run.
114
