Professional paper
https://doi.org/10.15177/seefor.13-06
Urban Forests and Greening in the Republic of Serbia – Legal and Institutional Aspects
Nenad Lukić
; University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Agriculture, Novi Sad, Serbia
Abstract
Background and Purpose: This research attempted to answer some general questions about the legal and institutional support for urban forests and greening in Serbia by focusing on the important aspect of urban forests and greening from the perspective of social sciences. It was interesting to reveal which institutions are in charge of these areas and who claims to have responsibility for their management and protection. This research was expected to contribute to the better understanding of the status of urban forests and greening in Serbia today.
Materials and Methods: Document analysis and face-to-face interviews were applied as methods of collecting relevant empirical data in order to discover if any, and which legal documents were addressing urban forests and greening in Serbia.
Results and Conclusions: The term “urban forests” is not generally accepted by domestic practice and among professionals who work in this or related fields. Instead, terms like peri-urban forests and park-forests are used in Serbia. The Serbian law does not recognize this term and states that forest may not be areas smaller than 5 ha. Because of the difficult period Serbia has endured in the last 20 years (wars, UN sanctions, the economic crisis) the overall care for urban greenery has fallen into background and is no longer an important topic among the politicians and the general public. In the last few years we have noticed some positive improvements like the adoption of new, more adequate laws, reviving of institutions that affect this field etc.
Keywords
urban forests; urban greening; legislation and institutions; Republic of Serbia
Hrčak ID:
106316
URI
Publication date:
28.6.2013.
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