Fourth meeting of the Transboundary Wetland Management Technical Group

27 Apr 2021

The 4th meeting of the Transboundary Wetland Management Technical Group (TWMTG) was carried out online on Monday 26th April, with the participation of representatives from the national parks and the protected areas of the Prespa basin, as well as environmental NGOs working for the conservation of the area. During the meeting, the results on the use of reed biomass as a soil conditioner and as fodder from the studies conducted by the Department of Agriculture, University of Western Macedonia, under the LIFE Prespa Waterbirds project were presented, as well as the results of three years of wetland habitat assessment throughout the transboundary Prespa basin by a team of expert phyto-sociologists, including from the Agricultural University of Athens, under the PrespaNet-EuroNatur project, with both presentations sparking fruitful discussions of the results and their potential implications for conservation in the basin.

There were also brief updates from all sides on various issues related to wetlands and waterbirds, such as the incidences of mass deaths in Dalmatian pelicans caused by avian influenza, which occurred in February and March 2021 in various wetlands in northern Greece, including in Lesser Prespa Lake. The Transboundary Biosphere Reserve Prespa project based in Albania and the Management Body for the Prespa National Park in Greece, both presented the latest developments in their work, whilst the PrespaNet members informed the meeting of new activities arising under their new three-year project commencing in 2021.

The aims of TWMTG meetings include the exchange of information and expertise and the co-ordination of efforts amongst the members of the TWMTG, in order to further enhance active cross-border collaboration for wetland management in the transboundary Prespa basin.

Fourth meeting of the Transboundary Wetland Management Technical Group Fourth meeting of the Transboundary Wetland Management Technical Group