Territorial protection and levels of protection
Legislation
Protected area
Buffer (protective) zones of protected areas
Territorial protection and levels of protection
Territorial protection of nature and landscape according to the law means protection of nature and landscape on the territory of the Slovak Republic or its part. For territorial protection of nature and landscape there are 5 levels of protection. The territorial protection specifies five levels of protection. The extent of restrictions increases depending on the increase of the level of protection. If several kinds of protected areas with different levels of protection overlap in some territory the highest level of them is valid there.
Legislation
The basic and fundamental document about nature and landscape protection in the Slovak Republic, is the Act No.543/2002 Coll. of June 25-th, 2002 on Nature and Landscape Protection and its amendments. A link to the applicable nature protection legislation you will find below the article.
Protected area
To achieve territorial protection, there are declared protected areas. The protected area is an important site under state protection. Protected areas are declared to contribute to preserving the diversity of conditions and forms of life on earth and to create conditions for the sustainable conservation, restoration and rational use of natural resources. The declaration of the area as protected also aims to preserve the natural heritage, the characteristic appearance of the landscape and to achieve and maintain ecological stability.Based on the state of the biotopes, the protected area may be subdivided into no more than four zones if necessary to ensure its protection.
In the territory of the Slovak Republic, where there are no declared protected areas (except for specially declared protected areas), the first level of protection applies, in which the general protection of nature and landscape applies. The levels of protection for each category of protected areas can be found below for each category of protected areas.
Protected areas (PA) can be declared as sites where there are biotopes of European importance, biotopes of national importance, biotopes of species of European importance, biotopes of species of national importance and bird habitats, including migratory species (for the protection of which protected areas are declared), significant landscape elements or natural creations.
Biotope (habitat) is a place or an area with a certain kind of environment that is characterized by certain species of plant and animal community, thus it meets the characteristic conditions for particular living organisms. It can be said that this is a common environment of organisms living in a certain territory, as well as the influences that affect it. The biotope always refers to a specific species of organism, for example biotope can be forests, caves, water courses, rocks, wetlands. The biotope can be understood as a common environment of certain components and a set of impacts that create the environment of all living organisms in the biotope territory. The term ecotope is sometimes used for plants.
Buffer (protective) zones of protected areas
If necessary, in order to protect a protected area (national park, protected area, nature reserve, national nature reserve, natural monument or national natural monument), it is possible to declare its buffer (protective) zone. Simplified it can be said that the protection buffer zone separates non-intervention areas from the intervention area. On the territory of the buffer zone, the appropriate level of protection according to the Act on Nature and Landscape Protection - Act no. 543/2002 or its amendments is valid. The buffer area of the national park may also include the built-up area of the municipality, the area to be built or the area intended for territorial development. The surface protection zone above the cave, which is or may be endangered by economic activity, is declared by Regional Environmental Office. After its announcement, the optimization of economic activity on the surface without disturbing the cave ecosystems will be achieved.
Act No.543/2002 on Nature and Landscape Protection
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