The Mrtvica river towards Nature Park status: 5,669 hectares under protection, decision on 13 October in Kolasin

The Mrtvica river and the area surrounding it is one of the areas that, for its natural values, deserves institutional and permanent protection, said the Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Development of the North, Damjan Culafic, as Vijesti reports. The process begun in 2021 has reached the final phase: the Kolasin Municipal Assembly on 13 October will have the opportunity to take the decision by which Mrtvica “will finally receive the degree of protection it needs”.

The minister stressed that the Ministry has done its part of the work in this process: after the Municipality of Kolasin started the procedure and requested the drafting of the Protection Study, the Environmental Protection Agency drafted the Study in 2023, while a new Protection Study was drafted this year. The Ministry gave its consent this year to the Decision, creating the conditions for the local self-government to take the final step — the formal declaration of the protected area.

The proposed protected area covers a total of 5,669 hectares, of which 5,643 hectares in protection zone II and 26 hectares in zone III. Protection zone I is not envisaged, since it is assessed that the natural values, habitats and species identified do not require the strictest protection regime. “This shows that the protection has been determined on the basis of concrete natural values and the needs of the area, and not formally, without taking its specifics into account,” Culafic said.

Mrtvica has outstanding biodiversity, geomorphological, hydrological and landscape values: important habitats and species, springs, caves, forest ecosystems, a fish stock and other natural phenomena. Particularly important is the fact that 122 species of moss have been recorded in the canyon, making up about a fifth of Montenegro’s total moss flora. Protection zone II includes the course of the Mrtvica with parts of its tributaries, part of the Mrtvicka Greda canyon with the canyon beech, and part of the basin in the Maganik area where the Bosnian pine grows. Particular attention will be paid to protecting the river and the fish stock, including spawning grounds, native species, and determining fishing zones and permanent hunting-ban zones.

The minister stressed that protecting this area does not aim to close it to people and development: “On the contrary, the aim is for the natural values to be preserved and the area to be used sustainably.” This means the development of ecotourism, mountaineering and other activities that can benefit the local community, without endangering nature. The area has no international protection status, but it has been recognised as an IPA area and an official candidate for the Emerald network, and as a future Natura 2000 area — which speaks to its importance and to Montenegro’s obligations for preserving biodiversity, Vijesti’s reporting concludes.