The changing role of local water resources over time (The case of Slovenian rural region Bela krajina)

Trobec Dr. (), Lampič Barbara () and Plut Dušan ()
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Trobec Dr.: Teaching assistant, Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Lampič Barbara: Ass. Prof., Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Plut Dušan: Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, Aškerčeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

European Countryside, 2017, vol. 9, issue 1, 177-193

Abstract: The article examines issues of local water resources using Bela Krajina as an example - a rural, karst landscape in south-eastern Slovenia. In the field, we made an inventory of 261 different water resources, analysing their past and current use along with their role in the life of the local population and assessing their hydrogeological sensitivity and hydroecological threat they face. With the introduction of distributed water systems, water resources lost their traditional importance in terms of water supply, with local population’s reliance on and knowledge about them fading. Nevertheless, certain local communities have recently recognized their natural and cultural value, as well as their importance to ecosystems, which is reflected in initiatives for the preservation, protection and restoration of individual water resources. Most of Bela Krajina’s water resources are very sensitive to pollution due to the karst surface, however the actual hydroecological threat they face from human activities in their catchments is relatively low.

Keywords: water resources; hydrogeological sensitivity; hydroecological threat; vulnerability of water resources; local knowledge; Dinaric karst; Slovenia; Bela Krajina; vodni viri; hidrogeološka občutljivost; hidroekološka ogroženost; ranljivost vodnih virov; lokalno znanje; Dinarski kras; Slovenija; Bela krajina (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:vrs:eurcou:v:9:y:2017:i:1:p:177-193:n:11

DOI: 10.1515/euco-2017-0011

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