After the opening of the 'iron curtain', Czech Republic has become known worldwide as a country of two faces. On the one hand, it has some of the most polluted areas and spoiled environments (especially Northern Bohemia and Northern Moravia--Black Triangle). On the other hand, foreign environmentalists and conservationists do find, in some areas, remarkably well preserved ecosystems, habitats, species, and biodiversity.
The Act of the Czech National Council no. 114/1992 on Nature and Landscape Protection defines a whole series of protected area categories. These areas are categorized by size, characteristics, access, and use. They include: National Parks, Protected Landscape Areas, National Nature Reserves, Nature Reserves, National Nature Monuments, and Nature Monuments (L. Rivolova, 1992). The term 'reserve' is used exclusively for protected natural ecosystems with all their interrelations and self-regulation processes, whereas the term 'monument' refers to a fragment of an originally valuable ecosystem or, to a site of only one branch of scientific interest, e.g., stations of rare plant or animal species or their community, locality of a rare mineral or fossil, geomorphologically or geologically interesting formations. National Nature Reserves and National Nature Monuments are areas of national or even international importance, whereas Nature Reserves and Nature Monuments are only of regional or even local interest.
The complete inventory of Czech Republic's protected areas include:
Most of these areas are part of the Territorial System of Ecological Stability, which is consistent with the Dutch ecological networking and is currently being promoted towards an all-European programme [2].
The following discussion and table gives an overview of the number and types of endangered and protected species in Czech Republic:
| Species | number | esp. protect. | endangered |
|---|---|---|---|
| mammals | 80 | 30 (37,5%) | 26 (32,5%) |
| birds | (nesting)192 | 124 (64,6%) | l08 (56,2%) |
| reptiles | 10 | 10 (100%) | 8 (80%) |
| amphibians | 19 | 18 (95%) | 13 (68,5%) |
| fishes, cyclost. | 65 | 19 (29%) | 9 (14%) |
| invertabrates | 40 000 | 150 (0,5%) | 188 (0,5%) |
Source: The Czech Institute for Nature Conservation, Prague 1993
The official (Czech) definition of an ecosystem is "a functional complex of living and nonliving environmental components that are mutually connected by metabolism, energy flow, and the transfer of information, which mutually influence each other and develop in a certain span of time." (Czech National Council Act no. 114/92 on the Protection of Nature and the Landscape). We can identify how processes contribute to the stability of the environment. From the characteristics of their stabilizing function follows the notion of a territorial system of ecological stability of the landscape. Such an territorial system is an integrated complex of undisturbed and slightly disturbed ecosystems, which maintains a required degree of stability.
This means that the benefits provided by an ecosystem (as a spatial unit) extend beyond the boundaries of the ecosystem itself and have either local, regional, or even wider influence. It also means that the benefits from the preservation of ecosystems must be identified from their stabilizing role for the natural environment, by means of the natural health of the environment, and its ability to sustain human life.
With respect to the abovementioned stabilizing processes of an ecosystem (area), it is difficult to determine the contribution of individual subsystems. However, it is very important to be aware of these functions since the combined results of many small-scale land use decisions have a significant effect on the capacity of natural ecosystems to provide these functions, leading to environmental hazards such as acid rain, the depletion of the ozone layer, and the enhanced greenhouse effect. Early recognition of these processes and functions, as well as the role natural ecosystems play in maintaining these functions, is essential for ensuring the long-term integrity of the biosphere (R.S. de Groot, 1992).