Project title: Transboundary management programme for the planned 5-country Biosphere Reserve “Mura-Drava-Danube”
Project Acronym: coop MDD
Project code: DTP1-1-259-2.3
Project period: 30 months, 1. January 2017 – 30. June 2019.
Project Partners:
LP World Wide Fund for Nature Austria – WWF Austria (WWFAustria, AUSTRIA)
ERDF PP1 OffÌce of the State Government of Styria, Department 13 - Environment and Spatial Planning, Section Nature Conservation (STYRIA, AUSTRIA)
ERDF PP2 lnstitute of the Republic of Slovenia for Nature Conservation (IRSNC, SLOVENIA)
ERDF PP3 Municipality Velika Polana (VELIKA POLANA, SLOVENIA)
ERDF PP4 Public institution for nature protection of Virovitica-Podravina County (Pl for nature VPC, CROATIA)
ERDF PP5 Balaton-felvidéki National Park Directorate (BfNPI, HUNGARY)
ERDF PP6 Public institution for nature protection of Osijek- Baranja County (AUZVP OBZ, CROATIA)
ERDF PP7 Public lnstitution for Management of Protected NaturalAreas in the Koprivnica KriZevci County (JUZDPKKZ, CROATIA)
ERDF PP8 WWF Adria - Association for the protection of nature and conservation of biological diversity (WWF Adria, CROATIA)
IPA PP1 Vojvodina Sume Public lnstitution (VSUME, SERBIA)
IPA PP2 lnstitute for Nature Conservation of Vojvodina Province (INCVP, SERBIA)
Associated Strategic Partners:
ASPl Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management, Division l/8, National Parks, Nature Conservation and Species Protection (BMLFUW, AUSTRIA)
ASP2 DANUBEPARKS - Danube River Network of Protected Areas (DANUBEPARKS, AUSTRIA)
ASP3 Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning, Environment Directorate (MOP, SLOVENIA)
ASP4 Medjimurska Priroda - Public lnstitution for Nature Protection (Medjimurska priroda, CROATIA)
ASP5 Public lnstitution for Management of Protected NaturalAreas in Varaždin County (JU ZDP VZ, CROATIA)
ASP6 Public lnstitution Nature Park Kopaöki Rit (JUPPKR, CROATIA)
ASP7 The City of Sombor (SOMBOR, SERBIA)
ASP8 UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe (UNESCO, ITALY)
ASP9 lnternational Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR, AUSTRIA)
ASPIO EuroNatur Foundation (EURONATUR, GERMANY)
Project budget: 2,154,000.00 EUR
Balaton-felvidéki National Park Directorate budget: 210.300,00 EUR
(ERDF Contribution 85%, State Contribution 15%)
Project Summary:
Spanning across Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary and Serbia , the riverine landscape of the lower courses of the Drava and Mura and related Danube sections forms one of Europe's most important biocorridors. Since 1993, NGOs and public authorities have cooperated to work towards the protection of this unique landscape as a UNESCO Transboundary Biosphere Reserve "Mura-Drava-Danube" (TBR MDD) - the"Amazon of Europe".
However, the lack of operational cooperation for harmonising management practices between 12 single protected areas in the 5 TBR countries threatens the ecological integrity of the planned TBR MDD. Coop MDD aims to overcome these obstacles by establishing a strategic and operational framework for transboundary nature protection, restoration and management of the Mura-Drava-Danube river corridor in Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Croatia and Serbia as the basis of a well-managed TBR MDD.
Through workshops, study visits, capacity building, awareness-raising activities and pilot implementation of concrete actions in the field of restoration, stakeholder participation and environmental education, the cooperation of PA authorities and cross-sectoral stakeholders for management of TBR MDD will be established, and a wider acceptance by local stakeholders, inhabitants and visitors for establishment of TBR MDD will be achieved.
The main project output - the Transboundary Management Programme for River-Dynamic Corridor Developmenf - will be taken up by the S-country ministerial Coordination Board as their baseline strategic and operational work programme towards establishment of the TBR MDD'
This will set a solid foundation for long term functional implementation of the 1 million-hectare, 700 km long TBR MDD in the context of transboundary nature conservation, making it Europe's largest protected river corridor and world's first penta-lateral UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
Project Coordinator:
Beata Gerencser
nature protection development referent
phone: +36 70 469 2292
e-mail: gerencser@bfnp.kwm.hu, bfnpi.gerencser@gmail.com
Project co-funded by European Union funds (ERDF, IPA)
http://www.interreg-danube.eu/coop-mdd
