Protected Areas and World Heritage Programme

Guidelines for Protected Area Management Categories

SKOCJANSKE JAME NATURAL MONUMENT, Slovenia

National designation Skocjanske Jame was established as a 200ha natural monument in 1980. It is protected under the Law of Protection of Natural and Cultural Features, 1/1981. Land is mostly under private ownership, but the underground cave system is owned by the government.

Legal basis of management Objectives under the Law of Protection of Natural and Cultural Heritage are to protect the outstanding geological features, together with the flora and fauna in the caves. All forms of construction and pollution are prohibited. In the peripheral zone, pollution is prohibited and it is not permitted to build beyond existing village boundaries. Scientific research and agricultural work must be authorised, and development for tourism is subject to certain conditions.

In situ management The Commune of Sezana has transferred the legal rights of management to the Office of Tourism, Portoroz. Management is concerned mainly with controlling the high number of visitors and catering for their needs, especially through provision of safety walkways and bridges. Management of the site is integrated with the social and spatial plans for the commune in accordance with the decrees protecting the caves.

Geography Skocjan is a shallow limestone canyon, with an associated underground river and cave system that features four deep and picturesque chasms. The Mahorcic cave includes several underground lakes and five cascades. The site exhibits classic karst drainage channels formed by the River Reka, with one underground passage 2km in length. This passage, one of the largest underground canyons in the world, is up to 148m high and 100m wide.

Nature conservation values The canyon supports vegetation formations which, due to the microclimate in the river valley, are representative of the floras of Central Europe, Mediterranean, Ilyria and Alps. These unique conditions result in Mediterranean species growing next to Alpine species. The system of caves has a typical speleofauna, including an endemic amphibian. Five species of bat winter in the underground galleries.

Cultural and social values Archaeological finds point to a continuous period of 10,000 years of settlement from the Middle Stone Age. The Romans erected a fortification in the village, and a fortified settlement was established during the Middle Ages. The three villages of Skocjan pri Divaci, Matavan and Betanja have a total population of 200 residents.

Reasons for classification as III (Natural Monument) Skocjan's cave systems, with their unique flora and fauna, are of outstanding significance. The site is protected, the emphasis of management being to accommodate large numbers of visitors without detriment to this small natural monument.

National designation Victoria Falls was proclaimed a national monument in 1935 and again in 1970 under the Monuments and Relicts Act, 1970. The land, totalling 1900ha, is owned by government.

Legal basis of management The integrity of Victoria Falls as a national monument is assured under the Monuments and Relics Act. Killing, disturbance, or damage to wildlife or its removal is prohibited. Entry of livestock and domestic animals is also forbidden.

In situ management Plant and animal monitoring programmes are carried out to assist management. Public access is not restricted, necessitating considerable investments to mitigate the impacts of trampling and erosion caused by the intense visitor use. Eroded areas have been rehabilitated and paths constructed to alleviate trampling impacts.

Geography Victoria Falls lies on the Zambezi River. Since the uplifting of the Makgadikgadi Pan about two million years ago, the Zambezi River has been cutting through the basalt, exploiting weak fissures and forming a series of retreating gorges below the present falls.

Nature conservation values The Falls is the largest curtain of falling water in the world, with over 500 million litres of water falling per minute when the Zambezi is in full flood (February or March). The riverine 'rain forest' within the waterfall splash zone is a fragile ecosystem, containing many unique plant species. A wide variety of waterbirds frequent the river above the Falls.

Cultural and social values The site in uninhabited but it receives a large number of visitors each year.

Reasons for classification as III (Natural Monument) Victoria Falls is one of the natural wonders of the world. A sufficiently large area is protected to ensure that the integrity of the site is maintained. Management is directed towards providing for a high level of visitor appreciation of the site.

Devil's Tower has great geological significance as a 300m monolith of igneous rock columns, the tallest rock formation of its kind in the USA. Its plant and animal communities provide a complete succession from rock to mixed pine forest associates. Established as the first national monument in the USA under the Antiquities Act, 1906 and subsequently under the National Park Service Act, 1916, Devil's Tower is protected with respect to its geological and associated natural features which must remain undisturbed for public enjoyment. The site covers 545ha and is divided into natural environment, development and outstanding natural features zones for management purposes.

Metéora provides a unique example of man's interaction with his natural environment, based on its outstanding geological formations, associated cliff fauna and flora, and its medieval monasteries. Dramatic sandstone rock pinnacles of deltaic origin rise over 400m above the Thessalian Plain. They are topped by cave refugia and a group of medieval monasteries. The site holds 50 pairs of Egyptian vulture, the largest population in Greece. Metéora is protected under local legislation. Construction and rock extraction is prohibited or limited. The site covers 375ha and is managed primarily for conservation of the monasteries and the natural surroundings. Largely due to the inaccessibility of the cliffs, the relict flora and fauna have remained relatively undisturbed.

The site comprises a deeply embayed archipelago of high limestone islands sharing a common reef platform. It covers 1200ha, of which 90ha is terrestrial and the rest is marine. These high limestone islands are outstanding marine features. Habitats are virtually pristine, the islands never having been inhabited, and support many endemic and threatened species. The Ngerukewid Islands are protected as a wildlife preserve under the Palau National Code, Koror State Zoning Law and other legal instruments. The enabling legislation states that the preserve is to be retained "in its present primitive condition where the natural plant and animal life should be permitted to develop undisturbed." Land is recognised as belonging to Koror State. Management is focused on protecting the flora and fauna, physical features and ecological processes as a representative example of Palau's rock islands, and on promoting scientific study of tropical pacific ecosystems and public awareness. The islands are visited regularly by tourists but there are no facilities.