UzhNU employees will monitor wetlands of international importance in the Carpathian region together with international partners

On 1 May 2025, the international project ‘Introduction of monitoring of wetlands of international importance in the Carpathian region’ (acronym – WeVaRe) was launched with the support of the INTERREG VI-A NEXT PROGRAMME HUNGARY-SLOVAKIA-ROMANIA-UKRAINE. The project will apply a systematic approach to studying the degradation of wetlands of international importance in nature conservation areas in the cross-border region of Ukraine, Romania and Slovakia and encourage interaction and knowledge exchange between different scientific disciplines.

Uzhhorod National University is the lead partner and will implement the project together with the following partners: Synevyr National Nature Park, Poloniny National Park with headquarters in Stakčina (Slovakia), Technical University in Cluj-Napoca (Romania), RNP Romsilva - Maramureșului National Park (Romania), Žilina University, Research Institute of High Mountain Biology (Slovakia). Development of an integrated monitoring system for degradation and risk assessment for the areas analysed within the project, built as a unique database that will serve as a new model for wetlands of international importance in Ukraine, Romania and Slovakia. The WeVaRe project integrates advanced monitoring and analysis methods in new, coordinated and innovative ways to improve our understanding of the problem under analysis in the Hungary-Slovakia-Romania-Ukraine transboundary area and its impact on the environment.

The project will also reflect the interaction between scientists and stakeholders, as local authorities and responsible departments will be informed of its results.

The development of an integrated land degradation monitoring and risk assessment system, built as a unique database on the WeVaRe platform, represents a new model for wetlands of international transboundary importance. The advantage of the model is that it can be replicated in other similar regions of the world and is a useful, fast, uniform and cost-effective tool for a large category of end users.

Specific objectives of the project:

1) Inventory of wetlands in the SK-RO-UA transboundary region and establishment of their status by assessing the current state of the natural environment and biodiversity of wetlands and their surroundings.

2) Instrumental analysis of the hydrological regime and climatic factors affecting the functioning of wetlands.

3) Introduction of a comprehensive system for monitoring and preventing pollution of wetlands based on modern technologies and practices.

An inaugural online meeting was held recently, where partners discussed the main steps for the coming year of the project.

Press release available at the link.

• International Activities