Transcript Slide 1

This project promotes and supports land
managers who help us sustain the benefits that
we all get from nature
The Danube
PES: Rusenski
Lom pilot
Experience exchange: PES in
international river basins
02 April, 2012
Additional information can run
Nissovo, Bulgaria
Underneath if neccessary
`
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Conservation values
• Located in Northeast of
Bulgaria
• the canyon-like valley of 4
rivers
Lom
Pilotinsite
• One of theRusenski
11 nature
parks
is:
Bulgaria - 3,408
ha
• part of 2 protected areas
• Important Bird Area – 200 sp
• a rural area of 23 settlements
• a site of culture and history
• an HNVF area
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Socio-economic features
• Rural area, 2 municipalities,
population 23,565
• Living standard below national
average
• Migration of young &educated
to the regional centre
Main economic activities:
agriculture, tourism, fisheries
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The buffalo-cow herd of a local
farmer grazing in Rusenski Lom
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Conservation values
• 902 plant spec (23% of BG
flora)
• 200 nesting birds
• 70 mammal spec (76% of BG
spec)
• 6 protected insect spec
• 22 fish spec
• 5 protected amphibians
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
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Chamaecytisus kovacevii (Velen.) Rothm
Bulgarian endemic species located only
in the north of the Danube plain
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Ecosystems
• Forests:~80%
mainly deciduous
mostly of local species
27 tree species, among which Oriental hornbeam (occupying
25% of the afforested areas), Black locust, Robinia
pseudoacacia L. (22.3%) and Turkish oak, Quercus cerris
(19.4%)
• Grasslands: ~16%
Mostly dry grasslands (14%)
Wet meadows
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Provisioning services
Ecosystem service
Value (Euro)
Timber
80 000
Fodder (fresh grass&hay)
66 000
Herbs, mushrooms and wild
fruits
Game
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
250
230 000
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Regulating services
Ecosystem service
Value (Euro)
Water purification
15 340
CO2 sequestration
in process
Flood control (pilot estimate)
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
7 500
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Cultural services
Ecosystem service
Value (Euro)
Landscape amenity &
Recreation
26,000
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Users
• 23,565 rural population
• 155 818 urban population (city of Ruse)
All of them using:
Water for households and irrigation
Wood for fuel/ furniture (companies)
Grass for animals feed
Recreation and rest
• ~10,000 visitors and guests of the park only (not accounting
Ruse visitors)
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Users
• more than 10 big enterprises which influence the water of the 4
rivers
• 8 SME in the tourism branch in the rural area
• 3 specialized tour operators in eco tourism
• more than 5 local NGOs and tour-operators in the field of tourism
• ~70 registered agricultural producers
• 3 fishponds
• 1 `state forest enterprise
• 1 state game enterprise
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Profile of the site
Developments & pressure
•• Abandoned
Abandoned // Intensive
Intensive use
use of
of grasslands
•grasslands
Uncontrolled grazing in the park
Conversion ofgrazing
grasslands
arable lands
• Uncontrolled
in thetopark
Nitric pollution
• Conversion
of grasslands to arable
lands
• Intensive practices in neighbouring areas
• Uncontrolled tourism (distrubing wild
animals)
• Tourists walking in big groups – noise
• Waste management
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
Ecosystems in Rusenski Lom (protected
areas) create values, which protection and
maintenance is not adequately addressed with
regard 50%
to: Annual conservation budget of RL =
annual cost of just 1 type of conservation
• human
resources
activities (transport and guard costs on feeding
• public/
financing
conservation
and private
protecting
the nests-of
the Egyptian
vultures)
activities and capacity
building
• communication to the society
• communication to the business sector
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Our strategy
Basic settlement
• Phase I: Focus on cultural values
• Phase II: Focus on regulating services
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Our strategy
Phase I: Cultural values
• Testing the willingness of tourists/ visitors to
pay
• Testing the feasibility to introduce an entrance
fee (pilot for Bulgaria)
• Provide future income for the larger Natura
2000 site Lomovete
• Easy to communicate
• Provides the ground for Phase II – prepares
both ES providers and beneficiaries
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
Biodiversity
Picture titles can go
responsible
tourism
across two lines
Linking the users of the
natural capital to its
conservation
Topic can go here
Presentation
title can
go here
Additional information can run
Underneath if neccessary
Photo: Tzonka Hristova, Rusenski Lom NPD
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Environmental targets & conservation measures
control trough: maintenance of trails and camping
•• Visitors
4 species:
1 mammal and 3 bird species
places;
European
ground squirrel
• Establishment and maintenance of tourist infrastructure –
Crex
Crexboards,
(and their
habitats),
Black
Stork
and
information
benches,
shelters,
bird and
other
animals
Egyptian
vulture
watching points
activities
of emblematic
species:
feeding
• Conservation
Wet meadows
and dry
grasslands:
~545
ha of
vulture, creation of artificial water bodies, restoration
•Egyptian
3 eco-trails
of existing fishponds and fish-stocking for the Black stork,
restoration of the ground souslik and Crex crex habitats;
• Monitoring of the activities and outcomes
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Conservation regimes & needs
Economic
activity
Regimes
Existing
funding
Investment needed
Agriculture
Use/ restoration of grasslands
Grazing practices: 1 ha/ LSA; 0,2
ha/ SMA
Ban on fertilizers and pesticides
NRDP, Axis II,
AEP, N2K
payments
Incl. training
Equipment
Maintenance/
restoration of
abandoned lands
Setting fire and camping only in
specific places
Groups of max 12 people on
the trails
Decrease the noise to
maximum
Observation of nests without
direct access
OPRD, Axis III
NRDP, Axis III
Equipment
Maintenance of tourist
trails and marking
Development and
maintenance of
information boards
Training of local guides
and guards
Tourism
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
Funding
needs
82300 euro
~ 22000 euro
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Operational framework
Buyers: tourism
operators,
individual tourists
Accumulation of
funds:
• printed materials
• % per night
• % tour-packages
Provider: the
Directorate/ NGO
Biodiversity
Conservation Fund
Monitoring: Ministry of Finance, WWF
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Allocation of funds:
• maintenance of
eco-trails
• marking & info
boards
• Train local guides
• Conservation
activities
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Time frame
Maintenance of trails
and watching points
Training of guides/
guards
Development and
printing of materials
0
PES in international river basins
Printing of
materials
Conservation
activities:
conservation of
bird species
Maintenance of
trails, watching
points & other
infrastructure
….
Monitoring of the
scheme
Monitoring of the
scheme
1
….
Start-up cost:
Purchase of
equipment
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Environmental and financial monitoring
• ha of grasslands restored
• Species and their populations
• # and distance of eco-trails maintained (area under the
scheme)
• # tourists per year and destination
• # tourism companies involved
• Types of measures undertaken and costs
• # employees by type and cost (incl. guides, guards,
monitoring, implementation of measures)
• Total funds accumulated annually by source & amount
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Cost of the scheme
Item
Equipment
Value (EURO)
Explanation
840,00 Purchased during the first year
Printed materials
1842,00 Post-cards and boards
Maintenance of trails
5229,50
Trainings
Monitoring
Management
Total value (EURO)
- On sustainable tourism
10562,00 It will be implemented by WWF
and local Monitoring Committee
2970,00 During the first 2 years it will be
implemented by WWF
21443,50
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Income
• Average number of tourists per year: 10000
Item
Value (EURO)
Post cards
4845
Bags
4407
1% of the annual income
from accommodation
Total value (EURO)
PES in international river basins
634
9886
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase I: Cultural values
Implementation scenarios
Scenario A
Scenario B
Scenario C
PES in international river basins
All costs included
Without the management and
monitoring costs
Without costs on management,
monitoring and guides;
Guides are paid by tourist or under
social employment programmes
02 April, 2012
-11558
-6426
+1974
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Phase II: Regulating services
The idea
• Focus: forest ecosystems
• Funding: carbon financing for forest measures
(restoration and protection)
• Issue: not possible to prove the carbon value because of
the protected status (no net change in practices)
• Possible solution: entirely private set up
• Potentials:
local companies not bound to GHG legislation
tourists – voluntary set up
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES Project
Rusenski Lom
Shorterlearnt
title
Our lessons
Secondary information can go here
– Development of schemes requires constant communication
XX-XX Month, Year
– Data available at the moment in Bulgaria does not allow direct
calculation of economic benefits – necessary to invest time and
• Additional information can run
money in data collection and analyses
• Underneath
neccessary
– It is necessary
to provisionifmultiple
sources of income to
financially feed the scheme
– Carbon markets do not support conservation measures in PAs
– Support by national institutions is highly necessary!
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
Thank you
• www.panda.org/dcpo
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012
The Danube PES project
Rusenski Lom
WWF IN SHORT
+100
+5000
WWF is in over
100 countries, on
5 continents
WWF is in over
100 countries, on
5 continents
1961
+5M
WWF was founded
In 1961
WWF has over
5 million supporters
PES in international river basins
02 April, 2012