Protected landscape areas (PLAs) are defined under sections 25-28 of the Act on Nature & Landscape Protection No.114/92 Coll.
The remarkable aesthetic value of such landscapes usually also include the preservation of monuments of historical settlement.
Protection of these areas is usually graduated by a four-zone classification, which determines the limits of farming and other utilization of the nature potential.
First zone(natural – core, 5.4% PLA) – contains natural and semi-natural forest communities, virtually untouched by man, and most valuable varied non-forest lands, diverse in species. Care of the zone focuses on fine forms of forest management; in selected parts of forest, leaving meadows and pastures to spontaneous development and for purposeful range management. This first zone, the most strict, includes specially protected areas of smaller areas - the so-called small-scale areas.
Second zone(semi-natural, 34.6% PLA) – includes forest crops with more significantly changed species composed of pro-nature forest communities and species-varied herbages. Natural recovery is preferred in forest management; meadows and pastures should be treated delicately.
Third zone(cultural-landscape, 56.1% PLA) – includes monocultural production forests with mosaics of meadows, pastures, scattered built-up areas and rich representations of non-forest wooded species. The objective of the zone is to preserve and enhance the scenic character by usual landscape tending, including development that respects the scenic character of the area.
Fourth zone(residential, 3.9 % PLA) – includes continuously built-up areas with links to intensively cultivated farmland.This zone allows for the placement of residential and business activities, together with more intense agricultural production.
Each area has its independent worksite – authority – that coordinates activities related to the respective natural environment. All authorities are controlled centrally by the Authority of PLA CR. Protected landscape areas are announced upon the decree of the government.Currently, there are 25 areas protected landscape areas in this category, and PLA Český les (Bohemian Forest) is getting prepared.
Biospheric reserves
The PLAs of the Bílé Karpaty (White Carpathian Mountains), Dolní Morava, Šumava, KrkonošeMountains and Třeboňsko are among the worldwide biosphere reservations within the Man and Biosphere (MAB) program of UNESCO.
In 1970, the General Conference of UNESCO approved a large intergovernmental program focusing on the issues of environment protection, which was named Man and Biosphere (MAB). The MAB abbreviation became the symbol of an integrated environment protection conception that struggles to combine both the interests of nature and human activity. Within this program, a network of biosphere reserves was created that includes remarkable continental, sea and mixed ecosystems. The general manager of UNESCO decides, upon the recommendation of the professional advisory board, whether to include a proposed locality in the group of biosphere reserves. Proposals are submitted by national committees of the MAB program.
Additional information:
Czech Program on Man and Biosphere
Czech National Committee of Man and Biosphere Program (in Czech language only)