Within the framework of the Best belt project, representatives of non-governmental organizations will have the opportunity to apply with projects that contribute to the protection of the nature of the European Green Belt in Montenegro, which includes the areas of Lake Skadar, the Ada Bojana delta, the Ulcinj salt pan, the Cijevna River Canyon and the Prokletije National Park.
This was announced at the Best belt conference organized by the Center for the Protection and Study of Birds (CZIP) with partners from the German organization EURONATUR in Ulcinj.
The representative of CZIP, Ksenija Medenica, said that the conference is an opportunity for representatives of 24 countries, which belong to the European Green Belt, almost 80 participants to gather and discuss successes and challenges together, to exchange experiences and knowledge in the field of projects they are dealing with.
"The European belt in Montenegro includes the areas of Lake Skadar, the delta of Bojana, the Ulcinj Salt Lake, the canyon of the Cijevna River and the Prokletije National Park. In these areas, together with our partners, we have the opportunity to implement various projects," said Medenica, and it is stated in announcement PR Center.
According to her, within the framework of the Best Belt project, which will last four years, representatives of the non-governmental sector have the opportunity to apply for small grants for various ideas in the field of nature protection and thus contribute to solving some of the key issues related to nature protection and activities from the Action Plan to Close Chapter 27.
"Currently, one project is supported in Montenegro within this initiative, but in the coming years we will have the opportunity to support several different projects. So this is also an invitation for organizations operating in the Green Belt area in Montenegro to follow the events within this initiative and to apply with different ideas", said Medenica.
Director of the Directorate for Nature Protection in the Ministry of Ecology, Spatial Planning and Urbanism, Tamara Brajović, said that an initiative such as the European Green Belt is a great opportunity to encourage cooperation at all levels of all decision makers.
"This is an opportunity for the Ministry to receive new inputs in the context of considering nature protection as a new possibility, to continue to work very dedicatedly to fulfill all the obligations we undertook through the Action Plan for Chapter 27 and increase the percentage of protected areas in relation to the territory of Montenegro Also, it is important that local communities understand that this is a good opportunity for the socio-economic development of the area," believes Brajović.
The manager of the Municipality of Ulcinj, Ivana Karađinović, said that the new local government recognized the importance of ecology and that it has the support of the Ministry of Ecology, Spatial Planning and Urbanism, as well as non-governmental organizations in everything they plan to do for that city.
"The Municipality of Ulcinj, recognizing the importance of ecology, formed the Secretariat for Ecology, which will deal with these issues with the support of the Ministry. I think that such projects can contribute to Ulcinj and Montenegro becoming green destinations," Karađinović pointed out.
Andrijana Mićanović from the Montenegrin Society of Ecologists, whose project is supported within the European Green Belt, said that the focus of their project is the Cijevna River, which was declared a natural monument five years ago.
"However, since then, not much has been done according to that plan. The Management Plan has not yet been adopted, nor has a management body been formed. In the meantime, numerous changes have taken place in that canyon, such as the reconstruction of the road leading to Albania," said Mićanović.
She explained that a special plant community lives in the canyon of the Cijevna River, which, as she said, was severely damaged due to road construction works.
"Construction works in Cijevna due to the widening of the road dried up the area, led to a change in the micro-climatic conditions and now that plant community is on the verge of disappearing. In a conversation with nature lovers from the area, we came to know that this plant still exists in the canyon and that she managed to hide in certain parts. Our plan for the project is to map the entire area, to investigate it and to see if that plant community still exists and what its condition is," Mićanović said.
She said that together with the partners on the project, they plan to help the Municipality of Tuza create a Management Plan and a Biodiversity Plan.
"We want to give them all the data we can find, so that they can jointly find a solution to restore this plant community and prescribe measures for its recovery. This community has only been found so far in the Cijevna river. It would be a great shame if the action disappeared as well is necessary," Mićanović pointed out.
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