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Potential Use of Wetland and Unique Ephemeral Salty Lakes Restoration Action to Mitigate Climate Extremes in a Serbian Case Study

Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: In Serbia, the EU-funded Twinning Green Deal SONATA project focuses on Nature-based solutions (NbS) allocation, planning, and implementation. Focusing on the fact that Serbia is currently ranked as the most vulnerable European country when it comes to climate change. The SONATA approach includes societal involvement, ensuring that NbS planning aligns with local priorities and needs through collaborative methods such as the Living Lab (LL) concept. In the project, the LL will be used as part of a potential scheme to restore the water regime within a protected area near the northern Serbian town of Kanjiža. A number of irrigation channels was built in this area in the first half of the 20th century to drain the wet meadows and small salty lakes, making the land suitable for agriculture. Due to heavy influence of drought the agricultural areas as well as the remaining natural habitats are over drained in the protected area. At the same time a dramatic drop in the ground water levels has been observed. The management company of the protected area, together with the local community, aims to restore the natural water balance by changing the working regime of the existing flood gates. By doing this, they want to bring the water back to wet meadows and lakes during spring and release the water during summer to help maintain groundwater levels. The aim is to reduce the effects of drought on the surrounding agricultural fields, support biodiversity, and food production. A key aspect of the restoration efforts involves collaboration with the regional water management company, whose mandate is to regulate water flow in accordance with existing policies and infrastructure constraints. While their operational framework is shaped by legal regulations and a focus on flood risk mitigation, concerns have been raised about how changes to water retention might impact extreme precipitation events and the potential for cascading floods that could affect both infrastructure and agricultural land.To address these challenges, SONATA will apply the Living Lab (LL) approach as a platform for dialogue, bringing together diverse stakeholders - including policymakers, conservationists, farmers, and the water management company - to co-develop solutions that balance ecological restoration, agricultural needs, and flood risk management. Through this process, the project aims to identify strategies that enhance biodiversity and water resilience while aligning with regulatory requirements and long-term sustainability goals.
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17176181
Authors: Sandin, Leonard, Bargmann, Tessa, Junker-Köhler, Berit, Kireeva, Maria, Arok, Maja, Nikolić-Lugonja, Tijana
Language: English
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7083315593
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