87
I
mplementationchallenges
One barrier encountered during the project was the lack of
solidknowledge
on the baseline and of defining
specificob-
jectives
during the design phase. The targeted ecosystem status had not been clearly defined at the project start. Moreover,
insufficient national
expertise
in wetland restoration led to difficulties with the technical design of the project. There were
some delays in the completion of detailed design for Belene and Kalimok marshes wetland restoration and management
planning, causing a delay in the construction works and so in the development of the nutrient reduction strategy guidelines.
Changes to national legislation during the period of the project implementation also affected the approval procedure and
imposed constraints in terms of budget and time. Another difficulty during implementation was gaining public attention on
wetland restoration as a nutrient reduction tool. A lack of sustainable business cases for sustainable reed biomass utilisation
challenged the project feasibility.
WetlandRestoration
inPersina
F
oradditional
information
C
ontact
:
Directorate of Persina Nature Park,
F
ull case
studyfactsheet
:
Another wetland restoration and management project (Kylmäojankorpi forested wetland, Finland) shows that wetlands are
efficient measures to improve and regulate
waterquality
and
streamflow
characteristics. In Odense River, Denmark, water
detention through temporary flooding of wetlands plays a significant role in reducing peak flows, and thereby decreasing
water levels and
flood risk
in downstream towns and villages during extreme precipitation events.
Economic and social
(recreational) benefits can often be generated by the projects and can be a supporting factor for implementation. In all
cases, involvement of farmers is a key success factor for projects implemented in agricultural areas. Similarly to the Bulgarian
project, the wetland restoration project in Western Lowland Area of the Dümmer Lake, Germany, led to a LIFE+ project
(Project Meadows Birds).
L
essons learntfromothercase
studies
