Monitoring Concept of Climate-Induced Impacts on Peat Bog Vegetation in Pokljuka Plateau in Triglav National Park, Slovenia

Abstract

Considering the monitoring programme as one of the important feedback information on our implementation of management actions, it should represent the essential part of each management plan. The monitoring of natural ecosystems with low human impacts is of considerable importance to gain an expertise in natural ecosystem processes. After all, that knowledge would be helpful in decision-making process in management applications in a changing environment. In the present case study, the monitoring concept of peat bog vegetation in Triglav National Park is introduced. Considering the comparatively small area of peat bogs as well as their location at the southern-border of peat bog distribution in Europe, impacts of climate change will be presumably detected very early. The concept of monitoring programme is presented as a combination of an approach by stratified random sampling and remote sensing. The value of long-terms surveys on vegetation studies, together with environmental parameters and human impacts to detect changes under environmental alterations and oscillations, as well as to detect anthropogene pressures are described. Finally, some applications for conservation and management of peat bog ecosystem under changing environment are given.