The Register of Protected Natural Values of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Upisnik zaštićenih prirodnih vrijednosti) has been created according to the ''Nature Protection Act'' (Croatian ''Zakon o zaštiti prirode'') in 2005 (Ch. III/5, OG 70/05 with amendments in 2008, OG 139/08). The register is being administered by the ''Administration for Nature Protection'' ( hr, Uprava za zaštitu prirode Ministarstva kulture) within the

Croatian Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture and Media ( hr, Ministarstvo kulture i medija) is a ministry of the Croatian government in charge of preserving the country's natural and cultural heritage and overseeing its development. The ministry in its present form w ...

( hr, Ministarstvo kulture). The register serves as a reference database and unique official data source about protected areas in Croatia. The data in this register is public with the exception of special cases of confidentiality regarding the position of certain protected natural goods. The Nature Protection Act stipulates nine categories of protected areas. According to the Register, within the Republic of Croatia 461 nature sites are protected in different categories, of which 12 are under preventive protection. The protected areas cover 8.51% of the total surface out of which 11.32% belong to the continental territory and 3.38% to the Croatian maritime area. The largest part of the protected surface are the nature parks (3.71% of the total state territory).

Plitvice Lakes National Park Plitvice Lakes National Park ( hr, Nacionalni park Plitvička jezera, colloquially ''Plitvice'', ) is one of the oldest and largest national parks in Croatia. In 1979, Plitvice Lakes National Park was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage lis ...

is so far the only protected nature area that has also been added to the

UNESCO World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

Constitution

The Croatian constitution stipulates that the protection of natural heritage needs to be regulated according to the constitution and laws of the Republic of Croatia (art. 2). As regards nature protection, the Croatian constitution stipulates:

Article 3 The protection of nature and the human environment belong among others to the highest values of the constitutional rights of the Republic of Croatia and are a foundation for interpreting the constitution. ''Očuvanje prirode i čovjekova okoliša između ostalih najviše su vrednote ustavnog poretka Republike Hrvatske i temelj za tumačenje Ustava.''

Furthermore, the constitution stipulates:

Article 52 The sea, the coast and islands, waters, airspace, mining resources and other natural treasures, but also land property, woods, plants and animals, other parts of nature, immovable property and items of particular cultural, historic, economic and ecologic significance, which are of interest for the Republic of Croatia according to law, have its particular protection. ''More, morska obala i otoci, vode, zračni prostor, rudno blago i druga prirodna bogatstva, ali i zemljište, šume, biljni i životinjski svijet, drugi dijelovi prirode, nekretnine i stvari od osobitog kulturnoga, povijesnog, gospodarskog i ekološkog značenja, za koje je zakonom određeno da su od interesa za Republiku Hrvatsku, imaju njezinu osobitu zaštitu.''

Croatian State Institute for Nature Protection

The

Croatian State Institute for Nature Protection The State Institute for Nature Protection ( hr, Državni zavod za zaštitu prirode, DZZP) is an institution centrally responsible for specialized nature protection activities in Croatia. It was set up by the Decree of the Government of the Republic ...

(Croatian ''Državni zavod za zaštitu prirode, DZZP'') is the responsible national institution for nature protection. It has been established by governmental decree in 2002 (OG 126/02). According to the Nature Protection Act (Croatian ''Zakon o zaštiti prirode'') the institute is centrally responsible for specialized nature protection activities in Croatia (OG 70/05 and OG 139/08).

Protected area categories

The Nature Protection Act stipulates nine categories of protected areas. The national categories largely correspond to the internationally recognized

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

protected area categories. The table below lists the protected area category, the management level and the proclaiming body.

Species

The biodiversity in Croatia is amongst the richest in all of Europe. The reason for this is the specific geographic position of Croatia at the crossing of four biogeographical regions, each of which is characterized by specific ecological, climatic and geomorphological properties. The great diversity of habitats in Croatia has resulted in a wealth of diversity of wild taxa (species and subspecies). Unfortunately, the exact number of wild taxa in Croatia is still unknown. To date, almost 38,000 taxa have been recorded. However, the actual number is estimated to be much higher, with estimates ranging from a minimum of 50,000 to over 100,000. The Register contains 817 protected and 2,307 strictly protected wild and domesticated taxa. For particularly protected species the ''Red List of Plants and Animals of the Republic of Croatia'' has been created. There are more than 100 species that are listed on the European IUCN Red List of endangered species.Earthsendangered.com Endangered Species in Croatia
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References

External links