Trebon Basin Biosphere Reserve, Czech Republic

This biosphere reserve (declared as Protected Landscape Area on the national level, 70,000 hectares) is located largely in the shallow Trebon Basin in South Bohemia near the Austrian border. The region has been modified by human activities for more than eight centuries.

This semi-natural landscape comprises 460 artificial fishponds and lakes that were constructed in the 15th and 16th century and now constitutes the center of Czech fish-farming industry. The Trebon fishponds and Trebon peatlands, which are part of the core area of the biosphere reserve, are also listed among wetlands of international importance within the Ramsar Convention (designated 1990 and 1993 respectively).

Ecological Characteristics

The Trebon Basin BR is a flat or slightly undulating region near the Austrian border that has been modified by human activities for more than 8 centuries. A specific feature is an extensive system of fishponds (shallow artificial lakes covering on area of 0,1 - 500 ha).

There are 460 fish-ponds interconnected by canals and ditches (13% of the BR is covered with water-bodies), most of fishponds were built in 14th- 16th century. The important ecosystems in the BR are various types of wetlands (fishpond littoral zones with reed and sedges belts, marshes, alder and willow carrs, wet meadows, floodplain forests, various types of mires – peat bogs and acidic fens.

Luznice is the main river axis of the BR. Forests cover 50% of the territory. Important landscape phenomena are fishpond dams and dikes, man-made canals and dykes, open sandpits, human settlements and historical landmarks. The BR is an important bird area, especially for water birds (nesting, migration).

 

Socio-Economic Characteristics

Trebon Basin has been for more than four centuries and it is still an excellent example of a region where local economy uses the landscape and its natural resources in a sensitive and rational way. The traditional branches of local economy are represented by fish-farming in a sophisticated system of ancient fishponds, agriculture, forestry and also extraction of sand, gravel and peat. 

TBBR is a famous region of a traditional Czech fish-farming which is based on hard manuallabourthat has not changed much for centuries, specific fish-farming know-how is used and transferred through generations.

Tourism, recreation, spa and wellness industry have increasing importance in the economy of the TBBR. Although no complex exact data on number of visitors of different types exist for the entire TBBR, there are several partial studies on tourism and counted or estimated numbers of visitors in the most important parts of the TBBR (Trebon) and in a specific sector (spa). 

• Project: Disaster Risk reduction in UNESCO designated sites
• World Heritage list: Fishpond network in the Trebon Basin

 

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Last updated: April 2019