The Lower Oder Valley National Park will be the first new national park in the country in more than two decades. The Ministry of Climate and Environment is working on the plan to establish the park. The protected area will be created on the territory of four communes: Szczecin, Gryfino, Kołbaskowo and Widuchowa.
The planned national park is to protect the area of Międzyodrze. This is an area that is home to more than 200 bird species, including many threatened with extinction. The area is distinguished by peat bogs, wet meadows, canals, floodplains and lakes. Importantly, there is already a sister national park on the German side.
A special team appointed by the Minister of Climate and Environment is working on the establishment of the national park. This team includes representatives of the public – the initiators of the Lower Oder Valley National Park. The establishment of the new park is also being coordinated with local authorities. In the State Budget for 2025, funds have been reserved for municipalities supporting nature conservation. Financial support can be counted on by those local government units in whose area there are national parks, landscape parks or nature reserves.
National parks are our greatest natural treasure. I believe that the process of creating the first national park in 20 years will bring together all political, local government and social forces. Ahead of us is a time of pre-consultation of the preliminary assumptions developed by the Ministry,” said Climate and Environment Minister Paulina Hennig-Kloska.
The establishment of the new national park will not block navigation on the Oder. The national park will cover the areas of today’s Lower Oder Valley Landscape Park, but without the streams of the Western and Eastern Oder. Navigation will therefore be possible under the existing rules. Nor will the changes affect the operation of companies and businesses located in the area.
In accordance with the provisions of the Nature Conservation Act, areas used commercially and included in the park are covered by landscape protection and may continue to be used for their present purposes and in the present manner, the Ministry informs.
Fishing will also be possible in the park, but not everywhere. The Nature Conservation Act allows this form of access to the national park. Places made available for fishing will be designated. Due to nature protection and safety considerations, some restrictions on fishing may be introduced, e.g. the possibility of fishing outside the night time.
source: Ministry of Climate and Environment(https://www.gov.pl/web/klimat)
photos: Piotr Piznal, photo source: Ministry of Climate and Environment
Read also: Squares, Squares, Parks | Ecology | Greenery | Szczecin | whiteMAD on Instagram
