Ecotonic Zone Development
This project will include development of exemplary and demonstration ecotonic zones, i.e. vegetation belts between land and water, in the direct basin of Sulejów Reservoir. Maintenance and restoration of degraded ecotones help to capture nitrogen and phosphorus compounds. Ecotones provide an effective system of retaining mineral and organic nitrogen and phosphorus compounds resulting from biological and chemical processes occurring in soil and plants as well as processes carried out by living organisms, thus they reduce nutrients entering ground and surface waters. Construction of denitrification walls and biogeochemical barriers strengthens efficiency of the vegetation ecotonic zones in the areas highly contaminated with nitrogen and phosphorus compounds, such as intensive agricultural production areas and other rural and recreational areas without sewerage system.
Construction of the ecotonic zones in the Sulejów Reservoir area is to reduce inflow of diffuse pollution to the direct basin as well as to demonstrate how environmental protection measures can also address needs of a local community. The actions planned are to integrate mosaic vegetation zones with recreational infrastructure (piers, jetties and picnic sites) in the areas identified as prone to formation of cyanobacterial blooms, or heavily polluted areas. Currently 4 demo sites have been selected in the direct basin of Sulejów Reservoir, within the plots managed by the Regional Water Management Board in Warsaw:
- Swolszewice Duże demo site; plot covering 5 200 m2; it is an estuary stretch of the stream entering the bay, which drains water from agricultural land that is under conversion into recreational sites; due to a significant load of nutrient compounds and shallowness of the bay, waters of this stream stimulate formation of cyanobacterial blooms;
- Zarzęcin demo site; plot covering 1 250 m2; located in the heavily built-up areas being a natural land depression.
- Barkowice demo site; 3 combined and adjacent plots No 1482/3, 1482/4 and 1482/7 located in the village of Barkowice, with the total surface of 7 000 m2. They are situated in the natural depression in the backwater zone of the Reservoir in the part that is heavily used for agricultural production. The plot is below the edge of the scarp where Barkowice village is located. A bay that is heavily exploited by anglers, including a degraded ecotonic zone, and a peninsula, are within the plots. Two sites where the ecotonic zones will be designed will be identified in the following plots: 1. Barkowice Zatoka and 2. Barkowice Łąka
Preparatory work has involved development of:
- Network of piezometers: a contractor who installed a network of 30 piezometers was selected under tender procedure
- Analysis of hydrogeological conditions: a map of local surface formations, local map of hydroizohips, geological cross-sections in selected research cross-sections;
- Updates of base-maps within the area of the ecotonic zones planned;
- Water, soil and vegetation monitoring.
Monitoring results and proposed project solutions for the specific sites have been presented in tabs.
Team implementing LIFE+ EKOROB Project will be grateful for any remarks, suggestions and comments concerning the measures proposed.