1. What is the Ecological Network Platform?
The Alps are one of the largest continual natural spaces in Europe. The Contracting Parties have undertaken to preserve, manage and, where necessary, to extend the existing protected areas, and to identify where possible, new protected areas. They have committed to take all appropriate measures to avoid impairing or destroying these areas. They have also committed to promote the instituting and management of national parks, to set aside areas of respect and tranquillity that ensure giving priority to the wild animal and plant species over other interests. The Contracting Parties have finally committed to examine the compensation terms of the special services provided by the local population, in compliance with national law, to pursue the measures appropriate for creating a national and cross- border network of protected areas, biotopes and other environmental assets protected or acknowledged as worthy of protection, and to harmonise the objectives and measures with the cross-border protected areas.
Establishing an ecological network in the Alps is therefore one of the key objectives of the Protocol “Conservation of Nature and Landscape Protection” of the Alpine Convention. An ecological network is an area of natural habitats that are interconnected physically (territorially) and functionally through populations of species and ecosystems.
The Platform on Ecological Network of the Alpine Convention was set up after the 2006 Alpine Conference as an expert forum to develop common strategies designed to contribute to the preservation of biodiversity in the Alps, mainly through the design and support of measures ensuring the connectivity between natural habitats. Challenges to the biodiversity heritage are manifold. Climate change also has a severe impact on connectivity since average temperatures, which in the Alps increase faster than the average in the Northern Hemisphere, push fauna and flora to higher altitudes. The more fauna, flora and their habitat are pushed to higher altitudes, the harder is to maintain the connectivity.
List of members
2. Objectives
The main objectives, included in the mandate of the Ecological Network Platform are:
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Elaboration of common terminology and methodology for the implementation of the Ecological Network with the help of experts,
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Generating a catalogue of measures for the implementation of the Ecological Network, including proposals for accompanying public relations work,
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Determining appropriate indicators for success evaluation in the implementation of the Ecological Network,
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Working with interested administrative units (pilot regions) and local actors for the concrete implementation and establishment of connections among protected areas and areas with high biological diversity in order to create an Ecological Network at the local and regional levels,
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Identifying regional, national, and supranational sources of funding for measures aiming at the implementation of the Ecological Network,
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Initiating accompanying surveys on the Alps-wide implementation of the Ecological Network, based on the protected areas and their results in the pilot regions,
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Cooperation and coordination with all known projects on the subjects of “Ecological Network” and “ecological or biological corridors” at the international, national, and regional levels.
3. Activities, documents, results
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In March 2011 the Alpine Conference officially recognised and rewarded eight alpine regions for their exemplary work aiming at the creation of an alpine ecological network (more information
here). The final report of the R&D-Project describes the nomination procedure of Pilot Regions (
Summary). In the annex it includes the questionnaire interested regions need to compile, detailed explanations on this questionnaire and illustrates the benefits a region can get from the nomination. This annex is available in the
German version and in
FR,
IT and
SI.
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Download Evian Alpine Conference decision about the Eco-Net Platform with the first Presidency report (12th March 2009) (Find in DE, FR, IT, SL)
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Download Brdo Alpine Conference decision about the Eco-Net Platform with new aspects added to the mandate (8th March 2011 ) (Find in DE, FR, IT, SL)
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The representatives of member states compiled reports on the status of an ecological network in their countries in order to inform other bodies of the Alpine Convention and to decide on priorities for the work of the platform. A synopsis of the country reports can be downloaded
here.
4. Links
Ecological networks in the European Alps website