News

01/17/2018
A walk along the wetlands of Mura

The nineteenth traditional walk in a row will pass the wetlands that are located along the Mura River, in the area where the Hrastje-Mota hydroelectric power plant is planned

It is our pleasure to invite you to the celebration of

World Wetlands Day (WWD 2018)

in the framework of which traditional event will be organized

A walk along the wetlands of Mura, Sunday, 4th February 2018 at 10.30, Krog, Brod na Muri, Slovenia

World Wetlands Day, which has been celebrated since 1971, when a Convention on Wetlands was signed in Ramsar, and has been accepted by 168 countries to date, will be celebrated this year on Sunday, 4th February, with a Walk along the Mura River.

The nineteenth traditional walk in a row will pass the wetlands that are located along the Mura River, in the area where the Hrastje-Mota hydroelectric power plant is planned, and that would endanger those same wetlands.

The slogan of this year’s World Wetlands Day is the Wetlands for a Better Future of the Urban Environment. The Pomurje region has just completed the investment of the century – Pomurje water distribution system in which citizens have invested almost 142 million euros, and the vast majority of its waters is to come from the wetlands along the Mura River. The planned construction of the Hrastje-Mota hydropower plant would endanger these water resources and the ecological and chemical status of the water in the Mura River would deteriorate and affect the level, dynamics, quantity and quality of groundwater in the area of water catchments.

The largest flooding forests in Slovenia are located along the Mura River. The natural flood plains along the Mura River with a network of side arms, river islands, gorges and flooded forests resemble the Amazon River, whose biodiversity includes animals like black stork and white-tailed eagle, while in the steep slopes of the river banks beavers in otters reside.

WWF and a coalition of more than 70 NGOs are strongly opposing the project of building hydropower plants on the Mura River, which would change the Mura as we know it forever, and we call for the revitalization of our unique rivers in the campaign Lets Save Mura!

You are very welcome to join us!