Issue 18/2024, News

Sosnowiec: a new Nature Reserve on Poland’s map – one of many

Posted on 16 October 202418 October 2024 by Agata Pavlinec

16
Oct

In 2024, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the State Forests institution. To mark the occasion, plans have been made to create or expand 100 nature reserves selected through public consultations – one of the most interesting proposals is Sosnowiec in the Lublin Voivodeship. What natural treasures does this new reserve hold, and why does it deserve protection?

The most valuable section of the Wieprz river

Sosnowiec is already a protected area as part of the Natura 2000 network, specifically within the Middle Wieprz Valley Special Habitat Protection Area. The area for the new reserve covers just over 70 hectares and is located within the Milejów municipality, between Lublin and Chełm. Its most important geographical feature is the meandering Wieprz River, which forms the northern boundary of the reserve.

The main watercourse flowing through the Sosnowiec reserve is the Mogilnica River, a right-bank tributary of the Wieprz. Alongside it are water bodies and remnants of the Wieprz’s oxbow lakes, as well as naturally eutrophic water basins, serving as important natural habitats.

nowy rezerwat — Map of the new Sosnowiec nature reserve;
source: Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection in Lublin

The new reserve is full of life

Sosnowiec’s value lies in the beautiful landscape of the natural Wieprz River valley, as well as the area’s biodiversity. The new reserve is home to various forest communities, including willow, alder, and ash forests, as well as mixed coniferous forests. Observant visitors can also spot communities of duckweed, reedbeds, and freshwater macrophytes.

The greatest treasure of the planned reserve is the stemless primrose, considered a critically endangered species and even extinct in the wild. Populations in the Lublin region are currently supported by specimens from botanical gardens. The flora of Sosnowiec is further enriched by mountain and lowland meadows, as well as xerothermic grasslands.

The local fauna is also noteworthy. The new reserve is a habitat for the lesser spotted eagle, whose breeding sites require active protection – about 400 breeding pairs are observed in the Lublin region. Other valuable species include otters, weatherfish, and fire-bellied toads, as well as a wide range of insects. Sosnowiec is particularly known for butterflies such as the silver-studded blue, the fiery copper, and various fritillaries, along with rare dragonflies like the green snaketail and the downy emerald. Dead tree trunks in the area also host numerous rare saproxylic beetles, considered relics of primeval forests.

100 Nature Reserves for the 100th anniversary of the State Forests

The new State Forests initiative has so far identified 200 proposals for new nature reserves across Poland – Sosnowiec is one of them. Preparing these proposals has been the responsibility of regional directors of environmental protection, who are guided by nature conservation regulations. In the Lublin Voivodeship, other proposed reserves include Kurhany-Namule, which features archaeological sites from the 7th-10th centuries, and Las Ochoża, encompassing marshland and peat bog habitats near Włodawa.

As part of the preparation process for establishing new reserves, online public consultations were held, inviting citizens to provide their comments and opinions. Based on these, reports will be prepared, forming the basis for issuing relevant decrees.

Plans for new reserves are, of course, being prepared in other voivodeships as well. In the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, 7 proposals were subject to public consultations, 5 in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, and 4 in the Małopolskie Voivodeship. The Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection in Gdańsk presented a record 26 proposals in two rounds of consultations, including numerous lobelia lakes, peat bogs, and swampy forests rich in rare plant species. An equal number of new reserve proposals were submitted in the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, where the priority has been the protection and preservation of forest communities. Time will tell which 100 reserves will eventually be established.