6. Transboundary cooperation

5.1. Declassification of the protected areas and enabling developments within

5.2. Adoption of proposals to expand the wilderness area in the Park's core with

Pro-wilderness development would allow economic opportunities to be pursued to promote nature-based tourism at new locations and activities around an expanded non-intervention zone, while not undermining the ecological integrity of the NP. This tourism offer is in keeping with visitor's preferences, and can exploit global growth in ecotourism activity. The best access points to the Šumava NP's wilderness are currently regarded as being "full" in that further increases in visitors would damage the wilderness experience which draws visitors. Therefore, there is perceived to be demand for a larger number of carefully managed access points to a

Local benefits could be enhanced through nature-based tourism development that is spread throughout the communities in and around the park. This would not conflict with the park's wild image that attracts visitors, and this visitor market could grow with support from expanded marketing activity. The potential local economic benefits from the pro-wilderness development option include: maintaining and expanding employment in management of the National Park's habitats, visitor facilities and access points; increased nature-based tourism trade in the villages within and surrounding the ŠNP; increased opportunities to attract financing for local economic development, and for the NP's management, both internationally and locally; a greater proportion of value-added in the tourism offer being generated within the local community, meaning more income can be retained locally and support greater indirect economic activity, and maintaining for-

The proposals in the draft Bills have the potential to generate employment through ski lift development, but much of this activity will use imported labour and/or be short-term (e.g., associated with construction work). The financial viability of this development is uncertain for a number of reasons, including: likely requirements to compensate for damage to protected habitats, reduced future snow cover due to climate change, and competition to attract sufficient visitors to use the ski lift. The economic impacts of the adoption of the draft Bills (and, to a lesser extent, of continuing with current management) would also include negative effects on current nature tourism activity and on its long-term potential to expand. Currently, and certainly if the proposed plans in the draft Bill are adopted, the value of the NP as an area of wilderness and high-quality ecosystems would be reduced. This would weaken one of ŠNP's key selling points as a tourism and recreation destination. The opportunity for international branding of the national park based on these ecosystems would be diminished. This damage to ecosystems would go against the views of the 75% of the Czech population who agree that it is important to halt the loss of biodiversity because we have a

some of the Park's most valuable habitats for wildlife

46 National Parks - Management and Conservation

moral obligation to look after nature.

associated tourism opportunities

larger wilderness area.

estry employment.

With the legendary summit meeting of Czech, Austrian and German nature conservationists on the Dreisessel peak the discussions about a large forested national park in the heart of the European continent began and have continued until today. Leading nature conservationists such as Hubert Weinzierl, the popular Professor Bernhard Grzimek, and the President of the German League for Nature Conservation (DNR), Wolfgang Engelhardt, supported the idea (http://www.nationalpark-bayerischer-wald.de).

Another 30 years were needed to open the Iron Curtain. With great enthusiasm, the two national park authorities established practical, though informal collaboration from the very beginning in 1991, when the Šumava NP was established [17]. Currently, the main partners involved in transboundary cooperation in BFNP & ŠNP are: Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Environment and Public Health of the State of Bavaria, Šumava National Park Authority, and Bavarian Forest National Park Authority. Since 1999, crossborder cooperation has been based on the Memorandum on Cooperation between ŠNP and BFNP, which was signed by the State Ministers responsible for the respective national parks. In the meantime, several supplements were signed, e.g., regarding park management and new cross-border trails.

As already mentioned, there is a long tradition of transboundary cooperation [24]. In order to achieve the common objectives for this integrated area, cross-border cooperation has focused primarily on the following:


individual rangers, joint courses serve to foster personal acquaintances and understanding of the history and culture of the neighbouring country. In addition, a reference manual with the most important facts and information on both national parks was prepared in the form of a joint bilingual ranger handbook.

guided tours into the wilderness area, cross-border monitoring and research projects and the establishment of a training and research centre are being prepared. The project [26] has been jointly presented at several international conferences, most recently at the World Wilderness Congress (WILD9) in Merida, Mexico (December 2009). However, Europe's Wild Heart's activities were frozen after 2010, when the new director of the ŠNP was appointed. He introduced not only 'NO-wilderness' concept of NP management, but also allowed salvage logging in the core zones and supported various development projects. For several years, not only the common wilderness project has been stopped, but also other joint activities were scarce. The contemporary director of the ŠNP, appointed in spring 2015, supports common activities and works hardly on improvement of the

Transboundary Cooperation: The Best Way to Share Common Responsibility for Future

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There exist two serious political problems in the Šumava NP, compared with the situation in the Bavarian Forest NP. First, unlike BFNP in Germany, ŠNP never received full political support from the Czech government. This is well illustrated by the fact that there have been as many as 11 directors of ŠNP over a period of 25 years! In contrast, there have been only three directors of the Bavarian Forest NP over the nearly 50 years of its history. Thus the position of the Czech directors is likely to have been untenable. In consequence, both the vision and long-term strategy for the Šumava NP remain uncertain and unclear, whereas its budget

Second, as a result of heavy lobbying by private owners and foresters, the Czech Parliament approved direct restitution of all the former municipal forests in national parks, which resulted in the Šumava NP losing control over 9.2% of its area (Šumava NP Authority 2013—management plan). Although the new owners are receiving financial compensation for bark beetle damage, they are becoming increasingly vocal about the 'unjust bark beetle control' in surrounding NP forests. Unfortunately, these municipalities manage their forests in a way that does not conform to nature conservation standards [27]. Currently, they are arguing that their

One of the biggest challenges for both NPs has been the acceptance of natural disturbances (windstorms followed by bark beetle outbreaks), which significantly affected spruce forests in this area. While the Bavarian politicians supported the BFNP managers to follow their NP's motto 'Let Nature be Nature' and intensively supported non-intervention management as an appropriate management in the national park, the same situation has almost threatened the existence of the ŠNP. Since the very beginning of the ŠNP, decisions about its management have been bogged down in never-ending discussions about whether bark beetle infestations should be controlled, or whether a strict 'non-intervention' policy should be adopted. After the Kyrill windstorm (January 2007), the Czech politicians allowed salvage logging in the core zones and only the public blockade and protests of NGOs, scientists, and international conservation community stopped this. Some local representatives and lobbing groups also tried to

forests should not be included in the nature zone or even in the NP.

Czech-Bavarian cooperation.

has largely depended on the sale of timber.

7. Benefits and challenges


guided tours into the wilderness area, cross-border monitoring and research projects and the establishment of a training and research centre are being prepared. The project [26] has been jointly presented at several international conferences, most recently at the World Wilderness Congress (WILD9) in Merida, Mexico (December 2009). However, Europe's Wild Heart's activities were frozen after 2010, when the new director of the ŠNP was appointed. He introduced not only 'NO-wilderness' concept of NP management, but also allowed salvage logging in the core zones and supported various development projects. For several years, not only the common wilderness project has been stopped, but also other joint activities were scarce. The contemporary director of the ŠNP, appointed in spring 2015, supports common activities and works hardly on improvement of the Czech-Bavarian cooperation.
