PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Böddi-szék, located in the central part of the Kiskunság national park, is one of the park’s Pannonic sodic lakes (with high concentrations of sodium carbonate). It is a priority habitat of the EU Habitats Directive and is also protected at national level. The extent of its area is significant, as it constitutes 18% of this total habitat type in Hungary. Unfortunately, however, the construction of a main canal and ditches for drainage has caused significant damage to the lake: the canal's high water has led to water seeping through the dam and flowing along drainage ditches into the lakebed. Eutrophication and spreading marsh vegetation are also posing a considerable threat to the other habitats and species, notably nesting birds, associated with this special wetland. Additionally, the drainage canal has caused serious habitat fragmentation, whilst changing farming practices have meant an insufficient number of grazing animals in the area.
OBJECTIVES
The overall objective of the ‘LIFE sodic wetlands’ project is to restore the original water dynamics and natural habitats of the Böddi-szék Pannonic sodic lake and its catchment area, which is one of the most important examples of this priority wetland habitat type in the Carpathian Basin.
Another aim is to increase the habitat management activities on the project site to an ecologically-sustainable level. During the project implementation, scientific monitoring will be carried out, applying the ecological criteria system and reference results of an earlier Hungarian LIFE project (LIFE07 NAT/H/000324).
A further project goal is to draw the attention of local people to the importance of sodic areas at European level, with special emphasis on the dynamism of the ecological system of sodic wetlands; awareness-raising actions will highlight the lakes' vulnerability and the importance of agricultural practices to their long-term conservation.
Expected results: The project expects to achieve the following results: