On September 15, 2021, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) declared Europe’s Mura-Drava-Danube (MDD), the largest riverine protected area on the continent known as ‘Amazon of Europe’ as the world’s first five-country biosphere reserve.
Key Features of Amazon of Europe:
i.Countries covered– Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary and Serbia.
ii.Rivers covered– Mura, Drava and Danube
iii.Total area of the reserve– Million Hectares
iv.Nature– Floodplain forests, gravel and sand banks, river islands, oxbows and meadows.
v.Species– It has Europe’s highest density of breeding white-tailed eagle as well as endangered species such as the little tern, black stork, otters, beavers and sturgeons. It is also an important annual resting and feeding place for more than 250,000 migratory birds.
vi.The biosphere reserve covers 700 kilometres.
Key Points:
i.Now with this recognition, these five countries are mandated to jointly protect and revitalize the area and boost sustainable business practices.
ii.This reserve contributes to the implementation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy in the Mura-Drava-Danube region which aims to bolster 25,000 km of rivers and protect 30% of the European Union’s land area by 2030.
iii.It will also contribute to the EU’s Green New Deal which aims no net greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions by 2050.
iv.It should be noted that there are 727 biosphere reserves in 131 countries, including 22 transboundary sites.
Recent Related News:
i.On 21st July 2021, United Kingdom’s (UK) ‘Liverpool – Maritime Mercantile City’ was delisted from the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites after marginalising losing the vote count conducted. Proposal for delisting the world heritage site came after overdevelopment of the region, which includes plans for constructing a new football stadium.
About UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization):
2021 is the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development
Establishment– 1945
Director-General– Audrey Azoulay
Headquarters– Paris, France
