At the meeting of its municipal government, the capital city of Bratislava approved a contract which will ensure the long-term management on the lands in the city’s ownership with regard to the values of nature in the Sysľovské polia Special Protection Area (SPA) and will facilitate the restoration of the biotopes of the great bustard, the red-footed falcon, as well as other rare species, recognizing the social responsibility of the city.
The approval of this contract will also enable a systemic solution to other long-term issues in the area, such as the creation of a place for spending free time in the nature in the surroundings of the SPA for the residents of the city boroughs Jarovce, Rusovce, and Čunovo, and the creation of a bike path between the tri-border area and the city boroughs. Therefore the accessibility of the iconic point of the tri-border for tourists and cyclists, bypassing the areas sensitive from the viewpoint of the nature conservation, will be improved.
The Sysľovské polia Special Protection Area is unique not only because of its unique location in the tri-border area in Slovakia, but also because it is the only territory of Slovakia where our most endangered species – the red-footed falcon and the great bustard - survive. The bustard is the heaviest flying bird species in general, originally representing the symbol of the whole Danube region (Podunajsko). Due to the changes before 1989, during which in the land management, the creation of vast continuous areas seeded with only one kind of crop was preferred, its occurrence in Slovakia has been reduced only to the territory of the Slovak-Austrian-Hungarian borders, with the last living individuals nesting in Slovakia. However, almost the whole Western Pannonian population from Austria and Hungary fly here to last out the winter. This cross-border population is one of the two in the world, the smaller one being near Berlin, in which the number is not declining. Everywhere else in the world, the bustards are on the decrease. Whether and how the nesting and wintering bustards near Bratislava will be protected has a direct impact on the success of the survival and protection of this endangered species in the whole area of its occurrence in Europe.
The aim of the newly approved contract on the lease of lands for agricultural purposes is to ensure long-term management of the lands owned by the city with regard to the rarity of this area. Intensively cultivated fields will be changed to the original varied Pannonian grasslands and they will be maintained according to the government-approved Management Program of Sysľovské Polia Special Protection Area. This contract will take up the Memorandum of Cooperation in the Tri-Border Area which has been implemented by the entities in the neighbouring Austria, Hungary and in Slovakia for decades. Thanks to the approved contract, the situation, in which the city was not to decide on its own land independently, but the land was leased through The Slovak Land Fund, will be set right. Now the leased land will be planted with the herbaceous, grass and flowery meadow mixtures.
The new approach will contribute to the long-term sustainable protection of natural values in the tri-border area, it will create a space for new opportunities for financing the construction of infrastructure, as well as the places for recreation for the residents of the adjacent city boroughs, and it will enable the creation of a bike path to the tri-border area. The capital succeeded with this complex proposal for solving the issue of the protection area, as it has the funds, covered by the project, for the bike path between Rusovce, Jarovce, and Čunovo to the tri-border area, as well as for recreational places for spending free time. This is all a part of the package of activities of the LIFE Project “Long-term conservation of Great Bustard and Red-footed Falcon in border region of Hungary and Slovakia↗︎” of which the capital is a partner.
The capital will start to restore the biotopes next year on approximately 50 hectares, and by the end of 2026, the restoration of several parts of the area of another 50 hectares is planned. The goal is that the Sysľovské polia Special Protection Area will be dealt with in a comprehensive way, including the creation of adequate suitable conditions for the residents of the adjacent city boroughs and visitors to the area as well. On five selected lands of the capital with a total area of 2.4 hectares, situated near the external border of the special protection area, we plan to create a varied spectrum of opportunities for spending free time in nature in the next two years.
What will the project bring to the surrounding residents specifically?
Within the project, we plan to build a bird watching tower and another small recreational infrastructure in the vicinity of the tri-border area according to the preferences of the residents. An area like this offers enough possibilities to be used for, such as a recreational place with seating and benches, a children’s playground, a dog run, or other suitable suggestions. We have been communicating with the mayors of the city boroughs and we would also welcome suggestions directly from local residents or interest associations, which would like to put their shoulder to the common wheel.
For cyclists, we have been preparing a proposal for bike paths, which will create a logical interconnection of all the important elements in the vicinity of the tri-border area, through the city boroughs Čunovo, Rusovce and Jarovce up to the connection to the international bike paths around the villages Kitsee and Deutsch Jahrndorf. Soon it will be possible to connect to this bike path even from Čunovo, where the construction of eco centre has been under way. The study with the proposal of the bike path circuit is being prepared by the capital these days and it will be completed in March 2023. The study will be followed by the preparation of the project documentation for the bike paths.
Illustrative picture: The Great Bustard (J. Chavko)
