Testing of Guidelines for assessment and valorization of ecosystem services and their integration into development plans of management institutions of the protected area Orjen

The aim of the project “Testing of Guidelines for assessment and valorization of ecosystem services and their integration into development plans of management institutions of the protected area Orjen” in the cross-border Montenegro-Bosnia and Herzegovina region, is the integration of ecosystem services in the decision-making process related to the mountain Orjen, which will be achieved through Orjen mountain case study.

The massif of Mount Orjen belongs to the cross-border area between Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina and is rich in exceptional natural values.

Parks Dinarides Association, which is implementing the project, will, in cooperation with experts, test the application of the Guidelines in the pilot area of ​​Mount Orjen on the territory of the two countries. Guidelines for the assessment and valorization of ecosystem services developed by a team of experts from the Provincial Institute for Nature Protection from Vojvodina aim to give recommendations to entities that adopt development plans within the protected area.

Nature Park Orjen was established in 2018, and the Orjen Development and Protection Agency is currently working on the preparation of a five-year management plan. The process is in its final stages. On the side of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Institute for the Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage is working on the establishment of the protected area Orjen.

The Orjen case study, which will be the final result of this project, will not only test the implementation of the draft Guidelines, but will also provide data for coordinating specific activities aimed at increasing ecosystem resilience and achieving better availability of ecosystem services to stakeholders. In addition, the case study will address specific biodiversity management issues.

The target groups affected by the project are: experts in Montenegro responsible for the preparation of the management plan for the Nature Park Orjen, experts in Bosnia and Herzegovina responsible for the preparation of the study for the establishment of the Orjen protected area, managers of the Orjen Nature Park in Montenegro, the Institute for the Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage in BiH, representatives of local communities, farmers, beekeepers, tourism service providers, etc.

The project has a cross-border scope, bearing in mind that the massif of Mount Orjen covers the territory of two countries – Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. By declaring a part of Mount Orjen on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina a nature park, the conditions for the formation of a transboundary protected area are met.

The project started in April 2020, ends in December of the same year, and is funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).

More information about the project at: vladana.vojinović@parksdinarides.org