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The Value of an 1827 Cadastre Map
in the Rehabilitation of Ecosystem
Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech
Republic
Jan Hendrych a , Vojtěch Storm a & Nic Pacini b
a Silva Tarouca Research Institute for Landscape and Ornamental
Gardening , Průhonice , Czech Republic
b Department of Environmental and Chemical Engineering ,
University of Calabria , Italy & Centre for Landscape and Climate
Research, University of Leicester, Leicester , United Kingdom
Published online: 26 Jul 2013.
To cite this article: Jan Hendrych , Vojtěch Storm & Nic Pacini , Landscape Research (2013): The
Value of an 1827 Cadastre Map in the Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin,
Czech Republic, Landscape Research, DOI: 10.1080/01426397.2013.794260
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01426397.2013.794260
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The Value of an 1827 Cadastre Map in the
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the
Křemže Basin, Czech Republic
JAN HENDRYCH*, VOJTĚCH STORM* & NIC PACINI**
*
Silva Tarouca Research Institute for Landscape and Ornamental Gardening, Průhonice, Czech Republic
**
Department of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, University of Calabria, Italy & Centre for
Landscape and Climate Research, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom
ABSTRACT The analysis of land use and landscape structure changes over the last two centuries
has allowed us to articulate proposals for the conservation and the rehabilitation of natural,
aesthetic and historical landscape values in the Křemže Basin. Landscape assessment was based
mainly on information extracted from Stabile Cadastre maps drawn in 1826–1827, supplemented
by military maps from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and 1950s aerial photographs
obtained from historical archives. In the early nineteenth century, the landscape reflected a
spatial order and a balance of regulatory and provisional ecosystem services as well as aesthetic
appeal. The evolution of land use practices brought about by the industrial revolution period was
associated with structural changes, such as fragmentation and homogenisation that impacted
negatively on environmental stability. The restoration of selected elements, crucial for the
preservation of landscape character as well as of cultural and aesthetic values, provides a
chance to enhance the current structural diversity. This is of paramount importance for
stabilising landscape functions and ecosystem services such as water cycling, nutrient processing,
support to biodiversity, aesthetic appeal and transfer of educational values. The Stabile Cadastre
maps offer an ideal baseline for streamlining the rehabilitation of selected natural, aesthetic and
historical landscape features that can be reappraised during participatory processes with the
contribution of local communities.
KEY WORDS: Landscape rehabilitation, Stabile Cadastre, cultural landscape, landscape aesthetics,
ecosystem services
Introduction
The assessment of landscape changes in the Křemže Basin is a major milestone of the
Křemže Basin Revitalisation Project, carried out in cooperation with the Daphne
Institute of Applied Ecology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic. The study focused on
the central portion of the Křemže Basin, delineated by the Křemežský Brook
watershed. The final goal was to propose measures for the protection of the remaining
traditional landscape mosaic and for its gradual rehabilitation, reflecting natural and
aesthetic functions as well as historical values, and to support processes linking
Correspondence Address: Nic Pacini, Department of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, University of
Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy. Email: kilapacini@hotmail.com
Landscape Research, 2013
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01426397.2013.794260
Ó2013 Landscape Research Group Ltd
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landscape ecology, aesthetics and ecosystem services. Traditional landscape features and
land use, documented in historical military maps (produced during the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries) and in the Stabile Cadastre maps (1826–1827) provided the basic
reference information. These documents were carefully analysed and compared with
ancient aerial photographs and current orthophoto maps to highlight critical landuse
changes within the landscape structure. Our assessment has then been verified in situ
during the site surveys. This comparison served as a methodological guideline for
articulating the rehabilitation of natural, cultural, historical and aesthetic values and
functions. Ancient meadows and pastures (derived from the Stabile Cadastre key;
Table 1) were considered particularly critical and had an important role in the final
restoration proposals of the whole territory of the Křemže Basin (Figures 6 and 7). For
the purpose of this article it is not possible to present the maps in their entirety (1:10
000 scale, the whole area of 43 km
2
would fill four A0 formats), thus the relevant and
most representative area including the surroundings of Křemže town has been included
in Figures 6 and 7.
The local communities of Křemže and Chlum were approached to encourage their
direct participation in defining the principles of landscape rehabilitation. As confirmed by
local residents, the forced collectivisation of the early 1950s that brought a radical land
tenure reform caused the greatest landscape changes, wiping out most of the natural
structure and of the fine landscape mosaic that had been a distinct feature of the
traditional countryside, derived from the ancient land tenure. During the twentieth
century, meadows, pastures, trees, hedgerows, marshes, wetlands and minor streams were
gradually wiped out from the landscape in the name of more productive and intensive
industrial agriculture that alienated local farming communities and their traditional
knowledge and skills. This caused a breakdown of the traditional landscape structure
which had been based on a spatial scale set around human capacity and needs.
The project deliverables consisted of reports and GIS thematic maps, which were
reproduced as vector maps, and orthophotographic maps at the 1:25 000 and 1:10 000
Table 1. Land use change between 1827 and 2000; results are interpreted as % ratio increase (or
decrease) for selected categories. Data were extracted from the maps cited above by expressing
surfaces in hectares and transforming them into percentage ratios. The table represents change
during the past two centuries.
Land use categories
Stabile Cadastre,
year 1826–1827
Basic State Map
(Zabaged 1, year
2000) Increase/
decrease
Surface coverage ha % ha % %
Forests (incl. shrubs) 3303.13 34.67 4530.73 47.55 37.16
Arable land 2832.03 29.72 3072.87 32.25 8.50
Meadows Pastures 1945.46 20.41 1406.72 14.76 –123.80
1285.70 13.49
Gardens and orchards 24.23 0.25 118.82 1.25 490.38
Water bodies and riparian zones
(wetlands)
78.90 0.84 55.70 0.58 –70.59
Urbanised areas 58.59 0.61 325.83 3.42 456.11
Other distinctive features 0.52 0.01 17.97 0.19 19.00
Total 9528.60 100.0 9528.64 100.0
2J. Hendrych et al.
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scales. Proposals regarding the spatial and structural rehabilitation of meadows, pastures,
grass strips, tree avenues, hedgerows, tree groups and individual trees were articulated
for a rehabilitation of natural and aesthetic landscape functions, while highlighting and
strengthening persisting landscape features such as forest edges with traditional
meadows interspersed with trees, wet meadows and wetlands repository of essential
ecosystem services.
The Study Area
Our study site (43 km
2
), delineated by the Křemežský Brook watershed, forms the
central portion of the Blanský Forest Protected Landscape Area. It lies within the
Czech Highlands geo-morphological province; it is part of the Šumava Mountains
System Complex and of the Česko-Krumlovský Region of the Hercynian bio-
geographical sub-province. The climate is relatively mild, with precipitation slightly
below the national average. The geological substrate is composed mainly of granulites,
often accompanied by serpentine infills. Cambisols, acid cambisols, gleysols, rendzinas
and pararendzinas are the most common soils, in general rather stony and acidic. The
whole basin is surrounded by the KleťMountain ring (1084 m), comprising the peaks
of Bulový (953 m), Buglata (832 m), Vysoká Běta (804 m) and Kluk (741 m). The
basin’s pan (approximately 500 m a.s.l.) has a rather denudated terrain, modelled by
stream erosion into a number of smaller valleys, with an inclination towards the Vltava
(Moldau) River towards South-East. The mountainous landscape gently grades into
Figure 1. The Křemže Basin on the Stabile Cadastre Imperial imprint map, an illustrative section
of Chlum and Kremže area. (Source: Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre,
Prague.) (See online for full colour version.)
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 3
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fields and pastures interspersed with traditional fruit orchards (cherries, apples, pears
and walnuts) and tree lines along roadsides and paths.
The prevailing land use includes large as well as medium-sized agricultural fields
operated by large cooperatives who rent the land from local private owners often no
more interested in farming (their family land having been returned back to them after
50 years of state ownership). The fields are divided by roads and paths (along the lines
of the ancient path network), hedgerows and stone walls. The forest vegetation
comprises various woodland types; most of the surrounding hills are characterised by
beech woodlands with Dentaria enneaphyllos, by woodrush and beech woodland, by
spruce and beech woodland, while the inner Basin has woodrush-oak and silver fir-oak
woodlands, with enclaves of acidophilic pine woodlands (on serpentine bedrock).
Spruce and alder growths cover the stream banks, while oaks (Quercus robur) are
dispersed across the landscape. Wet meadows used for grazing are still common but
progressively disappearing, while arable cropland consists of very extensive fields
covered mainly by subsidised cereal monocultures. In places, soil erosion is severe. The
need for basin rehabilitation was driven by the urge to restore the water retention
capacity of the landscape, using traditional and aesthetically functional land
management strategies whose past success is documented in historical maps and in rare
portions of the surrounding landscape that still bear a pristine character.
Materials and Methods
Mapping Land Use Change
To provide indicators of land use change, surface cover was classified into a number of
categories which follow the historical Stabile cadastre key:
(1) Forests
(2) Arable land
(3) Meadows and pastures (including hedgerows and other ecotones)
(4) Gardens and orchards
(5) Water bodies and riparian zones (wetlands)
(6) Urbanised areas
(7) Other distinctive features
We digitised the 1827 Stabile Cadastre Imperial prints (provided by the File Centre
of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre in Prague), documenting
traditional land use structures in great detail. This involved scanning a number of
individual maps and then composing and geo-referencing individual sheets into one
seamless map compatible with modern mapping scale and standards. The output
resulted in a raster map containing selected key elements (forests, arable land,
meadows and pastures, incl. hedgerows and other ecotones, gardens and orchards,
water bodies and riparian zones (wetlands), urbanised areas and other distinctive
features such as forest boundaries, infrastructure, road networks, paths, water courses,
trees, etc.), as well as in a vector map to be used for quantitative evaluation. Digitising
plot contours proved to be necessary to highlight specific landscape features as well as
lines and field plot delimitations found in the Stabile Cadastre. The information
4J. Hendrych et al.
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obtained was contrasted to historical military maps to refine the landscape picture.
Finally, the resulting maps (basic and orthophoto, at scales of 1:25 000 and 1:10 000)
were drawn in GIS and printed to illustrate new proposed intervention measures
(Figures 6 and 7).
History of the Stabile Cadastre
The Stabile Cadastre map of 1827 is an example of exceptional cartographic work
worthy of description; it is our oldest map of the modern type that can be accurately
converted into standard map formats. Its primary purpose was to collect and synthesise
an objective information basis for calculating property tax. It had been preceded by
previous partial and less accurate tax records (acquired from 1573 onwards) and later by
the Theresian and by the Joseph the II rural cadastres, until a tax reform established in
1789 introduced the cadastral units which have been largely valid until the present time.
In the early nineteenth century, surveying technologies and topographical display
methods enabled the creation of complex mapping that far exceeded the requirements
established by the tax regulatory framework. Eventually nearly everything was
measured, whether fertile or barren, including poor rural and even abandoned
unproductive land. Each land parcel was classified applying a detailed catalogue of land
types and uses. Forests were subdivided into coniferous, deciduous or mixed,
specifying four different categories of tree height. Garden varieties included ornamental
and vegetable gardens, parks, vineyards, hop-gardens and orchards, private and
municipal pastures. Other categories included: dry and wet meadows, marshes, fens
covered by reeds, arable land, arable land with fruit trees, a number of different types
of scrubland, quarries, sand and clay pits, moors, lakes, ponds, rivers, brooks, waste
lands and barren rocks. The catalogue included public and private buildings (built in
stone as well as in wood), barns, ruins, mills, religious buildings, post offices, pubs and
gamekeepers’lodges.
A set of elaborate rules were specifically dedicated to the marking of various types
of boundaries and linear features, such as paths, fords, bridges, roads and other linear
and punctual elements. Many of these conventional rules, such as using differentiated
lettering in some descriptions, became established and are in use up to present times.
Mapped features did not include tree avenues and lone tree stands because these were
recorded separately to be given particular emphasis.
The Stabile Cadastre mapping was initiated at the time of the 1817 imperial land tax
charter to fulfil the needs of the property tax departments as well as provide baseline
data to all sectors of the public administration. The assessment of the tax due was
calculated according to land yields and was set to be constant (hence the term stabile)
despite annual changes in actual yields. In this way, success due to individual work and
know-how was not taxed—as this would turn out to be a disincentive—but only
potential yield was. In addition to the mapping of the surveyed data, written comments
were drafted into what was called an operatum, describing additional details concerning
cultural practices and including land owners’identification.
The scale 1:2880 was based on a square surface of 40 fathoms (Klaftern),
corresponding to one Lower Austrian acre (Joch) equivalent to 5754.642 m², which
was considered equivalent to the area a man was able to plough in one day. On the
map, this was represented by a square with a side of one Vienna inch (Zoll). This scale,
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 5
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but one dimension higher (1:28 800, the so-called Militärmaβ), had been already used
previously in the first military mapping (1763–1787), based upon the relationship
between one Vienna inch on the map, representing 400 Vienna fathoms on the ground.
This was equivalent to 1000 quicksteps (1 quickstep equalling 0.7586 m).
The preparation of the entire 164 357 map catalogue (the entire dominion ruled by
the Austrian monarchy) took 45 years. It lasted from 1824 to 1842 in Bohemia and
Moravia and from 1826 to 1827 in our study area. The Stabile Cadastre still amazes
experts with its breadth, detail and accuracy, and its high detail of lines and colours.
The maps continued to be used in updated form even in the second half of the
twentieth century.
Assessing Land Use Change
Soil types, agricultural practices and the increase or decrease of vegetation cover were
underlined in our study and represented in GIS maps by section lines that highlighted
the nature of land use change. Changes in linear elements such as trails, roads, tree
lines and water courses have been carefully assessed. To obtain a full interpretation of
this comparison and to optimise its scope for planning landscape rehabilitation
measures, a set of standard graphical maps was selected. A 1:10 000 comparative map
was chosen to portray the elements derived from 1:1000 and 1:2000 basic
topographical maps to the highest accuracy.
Results
The classification of land use change and the existing data were processed in GIS shape
files to obtain a set of comparable maps.
(1) The Křemže Basin Landscape Transformation Map
A projection of selected elements of the Stabile Cadastre (Figure 2) and of basic
topographical maps highlighting linear features was produced (Figure 3). This 1:25 000
scale map illustrates the main elements of the landscape scene: forests, arable land,
meadows and pastures, urbanised areas (including infrastructure, footpaths and roads),
gardens and orchards, water bodies and riparian zones (wetlands).
Surface elements were classified as ‘original’or as ‘recent’; their increase and
decrease was recorded, including even minor features such as abandoned footpaths and
minor water courses. To obtain an accurate comparative representation of land use
change, the contour delimitation was extended up to the ridges of the Křemže Basin
instead of relating to modern standard map boundaries. The most recent official map
(Zabaged 1, year 2000) is not entirely accurate since many elements are not recorded
or are outdated. Despite this, and based on data collected during field assessments, we
were able to record, elaborate and map changes that took place during the past 174
years (Table 1).
In the Projection of Stabile Cadastre selected elements on a standard map forest is in
dark green, while forest increase is indicated in light green. Recent urbanisation is
indicated in orange, while red indicates historical settlements. The original surface
water system (water bodies and riparian zones) is shown in blue, former meanders
6J. Hendrych et al.
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(including wetlands) in darker blue. Arable land, meadows and pastures, gardens and
orchards are generally indicated in white; their detail is illustrated in specific maps.
(2) Selected Stabile Cadastre elements in the Křemže Basin
A number of features recorded by the Stabile Cadastre including their description were
redrawn on the standard map, including land parcel boundaries and colours of selected
land use categories such as: forests, arable land, water bodies (and riparian zones,
wetlands), meadows and pastures, gardens and orchards, urbanised areas, as well as
communication routes and individual buildings with detailed description records. Recent
forest contours, urban development and infrastructures (footpaths, roads and railways)
were extrapolated from the Zabaged 1 reference map of year 2000. This comparison
Figure 2. The complete 1827 Stabile Cadastre map of the Křemže Basin within the limits of the
Protected Landscape Area Blanský Forest (red line); scale reduction. Forest is indicated in grey or
black, meadows and pastures in green, fields (arable land) in brown/beige colours. (See online for
full colour version.)
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 7
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highlighted major differences between 1827 and 2000, while maintaining the legibility
of the Stabile Cadastre. Comparing the two allowed us to highlight significantly more
detailed and more accurate distinctions of various categories of land use such as
meadows and pastures (including land parcel boundaries), than is customarily achieved
by any current standard mapping (1:10 000 scale; Figure 4).
(3) Land Use Change in the Křemže Basin Based According to the Stabile Cadastre
Parcels subject to no modification were represented by a solid colour, while land use
change was represented by parallel lines of the same colour (1:10 000, Figures 5a and
5b).
As reported in Table 1, the surface covered by forest increased by 37.16% to reach
nearly half of the study area (47.55%). The urbanised surface of infrastructure
(buildings) increased by 490.38% and its present total share is 3.42%; its proportion to
the open landscape amounts to a considerable 6.52%. Although arable land increased
Figure 3. The Křemže Basin Landscape Transformation map. (See online for full colour version.)
8J. Hendrych et al.
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Figure 4. Selected Stabile Cadastre elements projection to the basic map (close up of Brloh
village area, close up from 1:10 000 scale). Grey colour indicates forest, light green meadows,
olive green pastures. The current forest boundary is indicated by a solid green line, new urban
development by dark red, the roads and paths by light red lines. (See online for full colour
version.)
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 9
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Figure 5a. Land use change from the times of the Stabile Cadastre (close up of the Brloh village
area, from the original scale 1:10 000). Dark green indicates forest, light green meadows, olive
green pastures; red stands for urban development. Changes are represented by the colours of the
original use (as a base of today’s use) by parallel lines. Footpaths, roads and railways are inserted
from a recent map for orientation; former paths, newly built roads, water courses (former
meanders) as well as current water channels are highlighted in blue. (See online for full colour
version.)
10 J. Hendrych et al.
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Figure 5b. Forest and built-up areas change from the times of the Stabile Cadastre with the
addition of boundaries (close up of the Brloh village area, from the original scale 1:10 000).
Portions of the map where no changes were noticed are represented by a solid dark colour. Areas
affected by change are of the same colour but in a lighter hue; green indicates forest, red is
associated with recent urbanisation and infrastructure; former menders as well as the channelised
portions of the Křemežský brook are indicated in blue. (See online for full colour version.)
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 11
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only by 8.50%, its ratio to permanent grass changed from 1:1.14 (0.77) according to
the Stabile Cadastre, to 1:0.45 (2.185) in year 2000. It should be noted that although
Table 1 refers to the time span 1826–2000, and the most influential changes took place
during the second half of the twentieth century rather than during previous periods.
However, no detailed information is available that would refer to the period 1826–1950.
The maps clearly illustrate the extent of land fragmentation, with the disappearance
of traditional elements of the pastoral landscape, such as: hedgerows, dry walls,
dispersed vegetation, rural footpaths, and minor roads bordered by traditional roadside
vegetation. This evidence indicates that during the past two centuries, the landscape lost
a number of linear habitat structures and bio-corridors which are some of its most
crucial elements that play a role in enhancing ecological networks and environmental
stability. Coincidentally, these linear elements are also crucial for maintaining structural
and cultural values of the landscape and are relevant for conservation and rehabilitation,
especially for what concerns arable land, meadows and pastures. Paths, roads and their
buffers (such as hedgerows) are mostly under common ownership in local villages and
in towns; this fact allowed restoration proposals (formulated and articulated in detail in
the proposal maps, Figures 6 and 7) to be easily shared, supported and also
implemented after public discussions and final agreements by all stakeholders.
Figure 6. Detailed central section of the Rehabilitation map (1:10 000), showing the landscape
research analysis and the measures proposed for the Křemže and Chlum area of the Křemže Basin
(as indicated in Figure 1.). Red marks indicate morphology, vistas and dominant points, marked
during our in situ surveys. Coloured lines and coloured dashed lines indicate proposals for the
recreation of former paths, double dotted lines with letter marks indicate the proposed restoration
of former tree avenues and tree lines (but allowing caesuras and gaps within each line to gain a
more natural look). Key: Tilc - Tilia cordata,Qr-Quercus robur,Md-Malus domestica, Sorb –
Sorbus aucuparia, Bet –Betula verrucosa, Aps –Acer psudoplatanus, Pav –Prunus avium.
Coloured dots indicate proposed solitaire and group plantings; yellow for Quercus robur, dark
brown for Tilia cordata, blue-green for Alnus glutinosa. (See online for full colour version.)
12 J. Hendrych et al.
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Discussion
The Internal Harmony of the Inherited Landscape
The enhancement of both the landscape appeal and its productivity is a work of art, in
which aesthetic functions crown efforts deployed at optimising landscape productivity.
This balance could only be the product of sensitive and enlightened human action,
permeated by sound aesthetic and cultural values, implemented through an intimate
relationship with the landscape context. Human dimension and scale remained impressed
onto the structure of the landscape, revealing the typical limits of ancient technology.
The Stabile Cadastre maps graphically illustrate the marks of finely mastered human
intervention. A typical feature resulting from traditional practices is the development of
articulated landscape mosaics, testifying to a desire for spatial order, efficient land use,
and, at the same time, purity and boldness of forms and materials. Such harmonic skills
developed during several centuries of practice. While some features were sought by
design, or as local inhabitants practised their innate instinct for rational spatial
organisation, many typical landforms developed spontaneously as nature, in its turn,
adapted to human activities. A stable system of footpaths (often following prehistoric
pathways) was shaped to persist throughout the centuries. Small-scale fields, pastures
and meadows with their hedgerows, tree stands and wetlands sometimes persisted
unchanged up to our times, supporting a rich variety of wildlife and sustaining landscape
stability. Changes that took place during the second half of the twentieth century marked
a sharp contrast with the former landscape evolution, as can be documented by historical
maps and in greater detail by comparison with the Stabile cadastre map.
Figure 7. The General Revitalisation Project of the Křemže Basin (detail of Křemže and Chlum
area, as indicated also on Figures 1 and 6) in the orthophoto map (reduction from the original
scale of 1:10 000). Yellow dashed lines represent proposed rehabilitation of linear vegetation (tree
avenues) along the roads (allowing caesuras and gaps. Red (Quercus robur), yellow (Alnus
glutinosa) and green (Tilia cordata) dots indicate proposed distribution of group and solitaire
trees. Orange dashed lines indicate proposed paths restoration. Orange plots indicate proposed
wetlands, blue lines indicate proposed stream meanders and water bodies’restoration areas, green
plots then newly recommended and proposed plots of grassy meadows and grass stripes, violet
lines propose new hedgerows on sloping terrain (arable land that is prone to erosion). (Courtesy
of: The Institute of Applied Ecology Daphne České Budějovice.) (See online for full colour
version.)
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 13
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Change in the Cultural Landscape Mosaic
Looking at superimposed maps, it becomes apparent to what extent habitat
fragmentation affected landscape structure by disrupting the original landscape mosaic.
When the original Stabile Cadastre map is reduced to a scale of 1:25 000, the
alignment of landscape features and the mosaic layout formed by different parcels and
cultural practices convey the visual impression of an organic cellular tissue (see Figures
1 and 2). This arrangement of different land forms and vegetation assemblages reveals
that what is portrayed by the Stabile Cadastre is not spontaneous wilderness but a
cultural landscape in which each land parcel serves a primary economic purpose. In so
doing, it also supports adjacent ecosystems by contributing to the renewal of large-scale
ecosystem services, such as water cycling, flood retention, nutrient processing,
biological diversity, climate mitigation and the transmission of cultural and educational
values. With the socio-economic changes of the twentieth century, the primary
economic purpose of land management practices radically changed and the structure
and function of the landscape became profoundly affected, as can be appreciated by
assessing changes in the categories of land use illustrated in Table 1.
Urbanised areas and settlements, including gardens and orchards
The Stabile Cadastre records the structure of villages in their early urbanisation stages
(Figure 1). The increase in built-up areas by 456.11% (Figure 3) is seemingly not fully
reflected by the actual visual impact produced, which is much more pervasive and
characterised in particular by small-scale infrastructure and individual buildings
scattered across the landscape. More recently, a significant increase occurred in single
family holiday homes with new garden plots. This new type of development typically
does not respect the structure and disposition of the original settlements; on the
contrary, it often tries to build on the most exposed locations within the open landscape
(Fladmark, 1991). The highest building rates can be found around the centres of
Křemže, Holubov, Chlum, Brloh and Nová Ves; on a smaller scale, this has also
affected Krasetín, Mříčand Chmelná, not only in the former gardens and orchards, but
also in meadows and pastures (Figure 3, 4, 5a, 5b). No doubt, a regional development
plan could have regulated this. Any developer should be familiar with conservation
principles, limitations and obligations before drawing plans (Hendrych & Vorel, 2008).
Forests
Forests increased by 37.16% (Figure 3, 4, 5a, 5b) and now cover nearly half of the study
area (47.55%) (Figure 3). According to the Stabile Cadastre, forest stands were
considerably fragmented due to former wood consumption (timber, heating,
manufacturing) and to cattle grazing within the forest. Grazing used to spread upwards
along streams, but there were also extensive clearings in upland plateaux. The following
forest stands were uninterrupted, even though partially fragmented: Kleťmountain, hilly
complexes of Kluk, Švelhán, Skalka and Bory, woods between Mříčí and the Vltava
River. Clearings intersected individual hills and forested hillocks in the middle of the
Basin. By the beginning of the twentieth century, a large-scale consolidation of the forests
began. The highlands delimiting the Basin in the north-west became a continuous forested
mantle blurring the structure that had developed from human activities in former times.
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Water bodies and riparian zones (wetlands)
The Stabile Cadastre records only watercourses that are moderately large and that could
be assigned their own plot numbers (Draganits et al., 2008). Instead, the upper sections
of watercourses and small streams are only recorded as plot boundaries, while a
number of small brooks and springs are not recorded at all. Nevertheless, the original
meandering stream network is recorded and this is of great value for potential
restoration attempts. In our case, the meandering concerned the Brložský and Křemžský
Brooks, both regulated further downstream (Figures 5a and 5b). The original meanders
of the Olešnice Brook under the Brloh Pond and along the lower reaches of Lhotecký,
Chlumský and Chmelenský Brooks are recorded in the maps too. Although the surface
of the original aquatic habitats decreased significantly (70.59%), the net change in
water surface is nearly nil due to the recent restoration of the large Podnovoveský
Pond. At the same time, the surfaces of the Křemže Pond and Bory Pond slightly
decreased and several smaller ponds were abandoned.
Arable land, agricultural plots, meadows and pastures
A significant advantage represented by the Stabile Cadastre, in contrast to current
cadastral maps, is that it uses colours to distinguish arable plots, meadows and pastures
(Figures 2 and 4). Islands of arable land used to be interspersed with permanent
grasslands along the Křemže Brook and its tributaries. On the north-eastern side, the
arable land reached up to the forest edges. The south-western part of the Křemže Basin
used to be covered by grasslands, including in places where now forests spread out
(Figures 1, 2, 3). Apart from privately owned meadows and pastures, some municipal
areas were reserved for free pasture by livestock, similarly to forest pastures. These, as
well as grasslands that were difficult to exploit (such as hedgerows, rural paths, roads)
were recorded in the cadastre and allocated for free pastures. These traditional commons
were often the subject of tough disputes.
Deciduous and coniferous trees within meadows and pastures were recorded;
however, we do not know their exact density. Although the arable land increased by
only 8.5%, the ratio between arable plots and permanent grasslands decreased by more
than half (present 1:0.45 from a former 1:1.14), mostly due to the transformation of
meadows and pastures into the arable land that resulted in the overall loss of the
landscape mosaic. Landscape complexity and mosaic structure decreased by up to 80%
(according to the Stabile Cadastre and in comparison with the current situation) due to
the loss of traditionally structured terraces and hedgerows, footpaths and rural roads,
bordered by scattered road-side and path-side vegetation. Recently formulated
rehabilitation proposals, also based on the results of our study (Figures 6 and 7), call
for a reintroduction of the vegetation structures discussed above (Neuhäuslová, 1998),
and underline their value concerning spatial organisation within the landscape and their
aesthetic functions (Mukařovský, 1966; Šindelář, 1969).
The proposed measures (Figures 6 and 7) aim at replanting solitary trees, as well as
aligned, grouped and scattered trees (Hendrych & Tábor, 2003) that would revive the
vegetation (documented in old maps and in ancient aerial photographs) that traditionally
existed at the boundary of cadastral units, edges of footpaths, local roads, etc. This
could significantly enhance local biodiversity (Lambin & Geist, 2006), with the
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 15
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anticipated understanding and help of the local communities (the major part of the land
along the cadastral borders, paths and roads being in public ownership).
Conclusions
The Stabile Cadastre: A Guide for Landscape Rehabilitation
The Stabile Cadastre is an ideal reference for landscape rehabilitation; it clearly
indicates the general features as well as some specific elements of interest of the pre-
existent landscape mosaic. It is relatively easy to recreate these former features and
enhance the overall landscape value by improving habitat quality and diversification, by
increasing connectivity through biocorridors, by enhancing biodiversity; all actions that
will jointly strengthen the resilience of ecosystem services. At a time when frequent
debates occur in the Czech Republic concerning the impact of changes in land use,
sensitive landscape rehabilitation design based on historical information is the logical
approach in addressing many of the socio-ecological issues that arise; especially now
that land owners have regained their dominion over the landscape that had been for so
long in the hands of state agricultural cooperatives.
The historical pattern of land use that can be reconstructed by consulting Stabile
Cadastre maps is likely to become even more relevant for the future at hand, especially
in portions of the landscape that are under legal protection as part of the Protected
Landscape Area Blanský Forest (PLA). The PLA office is working with the traditional
landscape characteristics to develop the most appropriate strategies. Some of them are
still present in the landscape itself (as we witnessed and documented during our site
surveys). The military aerial photographs from the middle of the twentieth century
recently also proved to be a very valuable source in working with landscape spatial
information, in particular for the years 1951–1953, which just preceded major
destructive land use changes. Combined with our own in situ research and other
documented surveys that were conducted, the analysis of historical aerial photographs
contributed to our final proposal illustrated in Figure 7. This map summarises proposed
restoration actions, elaborated after including responses gathered at public meetings
with local stakeholders, and in particular the local communities of Křemže and Chlum.
Our study proposals and measures were then elaborated further within the General
Project of Landscape Revitalisation (led by the Institute of Applied Ecology Daphne,
České Budějovice) as part of the project that comprised the technical, agricultural and
hydrological measures aimed at solving water runoff and soil erosion problems
(Figure 7). Structural and aesthetic landscape rehabilitation proposals blended well with
more technical measures and the entire project was finally presented to local authorities
for discussions and agreement and is currently still being implemented.
Applicable Rehabilitation Strategies
The final goal was to propose measures for the protection of the remaining traditional
landscape mosaic and its gradual rehabilitation. Tree avenues, scattered and group tree
formations are basic structural elements in the open landscape (agricultural land, fields,
pastures and meadows) that are also important for the retention of surface runoff. The
16 J. Hendrych et al.
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water surface lost during the past 170 years illustrates the loss of landscape water
retention capacity and a proportionally greater flood and erosion risk. Tree roots
enhance soil infiltration properties by reducing the contact time between mobile water
and the soil, and by promoting preferential flow paths (macropores) through soil layers
(Lange et al., 2008). Deeply rooting species are particularly recommended for
enhancing water retention within the landscape and play a major role in moderating
flood and erosion risks. As presented in Figures 6 and 7, crucial measures are
concerned with interrupting long and steep slopes by the means of wide grass stripes,
hedges, paths and minor roads accompanied with terraces, tree lines, avenues, tree and
bush thickets. Other measures try to protect or establish individual trees in historically
significant and often visually dominant or symbolic (pagan and/or religious) locations,
mostly in full agreement with Stabile Cadastre maps. As anticipated, such measures
seem to match well current landscape needs as well as traditional and historical
conservation interests. In other words, our proposal leads to the rehabilitation of those
landscape structures that have proven to be functional over centuries.
The final rehabilitation measures (Figures 6 and 7) recreate crucial elements that give
the traditional landscape its order, aesthetic qualities and functions. Critical is the
reintroduction of traditional species and varieties (Figure 6; also found at various places
as in situ relics); these include: Prunus cerasus,P. avium,Tilia cordata,Malus
domestica,Pyrus communis,Juglans regia,Quercus robur,Acer pseudoplatanus,
Ulmus glabra,Betula verrucosa and Sorbus aucuparia. Linear tree planting
(rehabilitation of tree avenues) follows the idea of emphasising the articulation of the
landscape, by establishing a distinction between cadastral borders and a whole
hierarchy of larger and smaller communication routes (Figure 1 and Figure 6).
Currently, due to a grant project ‘Outstanding Tree Avenues of Bohemia’, it will be
possible to conduct further relevant research, and to use vegetative and generative tree
propagation techniques to preserve the genetic tree avenue stock for future use in the
landscape. We prepared sufficient root stock for grafting traditional fruit trees from the
Křemže Basin landscape, such as the local cherry trees forming characteristic tree
avenues. The grafting process was carried out during the winter 2012–2013 and all
scions will be further maintained within the Silva Tarouca Research Institute
greenhouses and at the Institute’s outdoor propagation facilities. Within a time scale of
three to four years, the propagated trees could be replanted at appropriate locations
(Figures 6 and 7) within the Křemže Basin landscape.
Solitaire trees are documented in historical maps and photographs, but are rarely
found in situ (a spectacular line of four Quercus robur stands beside an ancient
hedgerow near Lhotka village). Replanting of solitaire trees (Figures 6 and 7) is
proposed to visually enhance spatially empty niches, to cover and hide the shafts of
subsoil drains or to highlight minor architectural elements (crosses, chapels, small
bridges, etc.) and other important places within the landscape.
Alnus glutinosa was selected for stabilising riparian zones and for promoting stream
meandering. It is well known that forested riparian strips act as a nutrient sink by
trapping nutrients transported in runoff (Haycock & Pinay, 1993; Pinay et al., 1992).
Dissolved nutrients entering streams through surface and subsurface flow paths can be
partly removed by riparian vegetation and by microbial processes in the riparian soil
associated with root presence. All proposed intervention measures are illustrated in the
Rehabilitation Proposal GIS maps (1:25 000, 1:10 000; Figure 6) and were adopted by
Rehabilitation of Ecosystem Services in the Křemže Basin, Czech Republic 17
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the Institute of Applied Ecology Daphne, as the core of the General Revitalisation of
the Křemže Basin (Figure 7).
Emerging Trends
Currently local farmers have the opportunity to enhance the productivity of their land
parcels through plot consolidation promoted under government support. An interesting
emerging trend is that farmers themselves tend to search for the enhancement of
cultural and regulatory ecosystem services rather than for just boosting agricultural
production. Ecotourism and a broad range of recreational activities, which appreciate
nature conservation and the preservation of aesthetic values, are gaining in importance
and give support to the long-term rehabilitation of traditional landscape structures.
Acknowledgements
This study has been supported by research grant project 002707301/I/. Further and
advanced applied research on selected linear landscape structures and subsequent tree
propagation was made possible by a NAKI grant, DF12P01OVV050, Ministry of
Culture of the Czech Republic.
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