Threats

Draining of natural rainfall

Most sodic lakes became victim to draining in the Carpathian Basin. It is partly due to the fact that the usually higher lying catchment areas are under agricultural cultivation so the continual human activities had no tolerance towards temporary waters around croplands or even gazing grounds. There is a widely held belief that shallow waters cause both human and animal illnesses. The situation was the same in the Hortobágy as well. In addition to the fact that they were drained, most lakes were transformed into fishponds (Kun György Pond, Csúnyaföld [“Ugly” Land]). Maps from the 19th century show two large sodic lakes on the project site Nagy-szik and Magdolna-puszta. A great proportion of these lakes survived in spite of the development of the draining systems, but where they disappeared fully the steep walls of the banks along the 89.5 m.a.s.l. line are still clearly visible. Through the deepest contours of the lakes a draining canal was constructed that destroyed the seasonal nature of the lakes. This canal was connected to other draining canals and to the rain run-off ditches of the town of Balmazújváros. It resulted in the complete disruption of the natural water-cycle (sudden spring floods in the depressions followed by a rapid evaporation period) of the lakes. These circumstances are required to maintain the rich endemic ecosystem of the sodic lakes.

 

Dramatic decline in the size of seasonal water bodies

Three main detrimental factors are responsible for the disappearance of temporary wetlands. One is rapid draining (detailed above), the other one is prolonged, deep water cover; the third one is the emergent vegetation that is the result of undergrazing and slow drying up of low lands. The exceedingly fast draining is the result of the presence of the man-made canal system coupled with the cutting through of the banks to allow water to run off from the smallest depressions. In certain cases – as water also arrives from other sources outside of the catchment areas (e.g. settlement) – due to inundations areas with deep and prolonged water cover came about.  The piling up of the cleaned out mud from the draining canal on the banks created a fairly high dyke system, where although in case of high water level the lake may overflow its banks, deep waters are present. The prolonged water cover supports the formation of marshy associations with a less temporary character. The ideal water cover would be 10-15 cm deep from February to June that dries up by the end of July at the latest. In the absence of grazing or in case grazing does not reach an ecologically sustainable high level on temporary sodic lakes, the marshy, marshy-meadow and meadow vegetation rapidly closes. The dense cover prevents fast drying up and survival and flourishing of the specialist flora and fauna.  Grazing, coupled with trampling, however, multiplies the extent of evaporating poached surfaces thus facilitating rapid drying up, which is a process indispensable for supporting the natural life cycle of sodic lakes in the Pannonic region. The accumulation of organic matter can only be arrested by the rapid drying up of the waters as well as by the trampling and grazing of ungulates which thereby create favourable circumstances for deflation. Otherwise organic matter builds up and fills the depressions and thus the sodic lake transforms first into marshy meadow and later into a marsh resulting in loss of biodiversity confined to sodic lake habitats.

 

Effluents and wastewater drain into natural water bodies

On the Nagy-szik effluents run from the nearby cannery into the rain ditches and pollute the temporary water bodies along the southern edge of this area and the entire Magdolna-puszta. The level of pollution is unknown, since it has never been measured but it can securely be stated based on visual and olfactory impressions that it is far from being natural. On Magdolna-puszta sewage leaks onto the area from the sewage segregation pools and the waste dump also pollutes underground waters at an unknown but presumably significant rate.   

Rainwater and melt water drains from a significant area of the adjacent town into ditches that eventually channel these waters through the strategic spot into the protected area. These waters on their way are mixed with other unmonitored sewage. Since the site of crucial importance (Lot. No.188/20) is low lying and is in level with the Natura 2000 site, these waters freely mix with the temporary water bodies of the sodic lake and other temporary waters adversely affecting them. The influx of wastewater can be significant after winters with heavy snowfall, when various de-icing agents are used as well as after prolonged periods of rain or sudden downpours. This runoff water has high salt content, especially in the spring, but at the same time may have high levels of nitrate and organic matter as well.   From the fishponds and Water Quality Control Station in the NE corner of the area wastewater has been flowing continuously into a smaller part of the sodic lake bed resulting in a marsh succession. The Trans-Tisza Region Water Authority (TIVIZIG) has a legal obligation to discharge irrigation water through the Magdolna-ér. This water comes from the Keleti-főcsatorna (Eastern Main Canal), so there is a continuous water flow through the area that has an unfavourable impact on the water regimes of the temporary lakes.

 

 

Disappearance of traditional small-scale grazing system

Due to the unpredictable market trends, change of lifestyle, a shift in preferences and the change of land ownership the once so widespread animal husbandry practices required to maintain wet and puszta habitats have undergone an unfavourable change in the Hortobágy. The first signs of this process date back as early as the 1930s, and although there is a very slow restructuring at present, the problem is very at hand.   

Today the most popular meat products are pork and poultry even on settlements in the Hortobágy where there are several-centuries-old traditions of shepherding and cattle farming. Some the historical reasons are that during the wars and especially WW2 the indigenous cattle and Racka sheep stocks became extinct. Locals came to prefer to keep the fast growing pig populations at their houses, since the forced collectivism of agriculture resulted in the disappearance of the commons, just at the time when all private agricultural assets were forcefully acquired by the cooperatives and state farms. After the change of political regime in 1990 the sheep stock in Hungary suffered a destructive blow when the price of weaned lamb was centrally doubled, and, as a result, nearly all lambs were sold. Later, after farming costs (e.g. fodder) had rocketed up and due to the irrationally high profit margin farmers were unable to restore the former numbers of livestock. Starting from the late 1970s sheep and cattle kept in the Hortobágy were earmarked for foreign markets (Middle East, Italy and the former Soviet Union), and there was no interest in the survival of the domestic market. As a consequence, people in the Hortobágy practically abandoned the consumption of beef and sheep, which came to be ingredients of dishes served only on special occasions in negligible quantities. Cattle and sheep farming did not remain unaffected by this trend and declined considerably. In addition, prices were kept artificially low that resulted in the bankruptcy of the farmers. This decline was to some extent halted by the EU accession, as the single area payments in the case of grasslands are confined to the ownership of livestock, a regulation which is an incentive force to revive animal husbandry. However, it ignores conservationist interests, since the support is available above 0.2 LSU/ha, which stock density is insufficient to ensure an ecologically sustainable high level of grazing.  Agreements are typically made for a period of six to nine years, so it is difficult or even impossible to influence the tenants to increase numbers to meet the environmentally desirable grazing stock densities. 

Village commons (pasturelands) still existed before the World Wars where locals could keep their livestock and poultry to satisfy their own needs. These commons, however, disappeared due to the reasons detailed above, in line with the changing attitudes towards animal husbandry. Before the World Wars generations lived together in one large household with up to four to eight children, mostly the oldest and youngest generations looking after the animals. This system was soon disrupted, the different generations moved away and the number of children fell to two or three, and animal husbandry was mostly confined to pigs and poultry kept around the house. Later women were lured away to work in factories in large towns, which entailed a further decline of animal husbandry.    

People used to keep a livestock of mixed breeds on the commons: cattle were usually driven home for the night to be fed and milked, pigs grubbed the wetlands during the day and were also provided with supplementary fodder in the evening. However, having displaced the Mangalica pig, newly introduced swine breeds did not require grazing. Earlier, most houses had a small flock of ducks or geese that were also driven out to the commons. The tradition of this small-scale goose-keeping was kept alive until the end of 1990s by the older generation, when the National Park banned all types of goose farming in protected areas. After the forced collectivisation, these commons were informally respected – small herds were tolerated in the pastures, and small-scale animal husbandry remained present on the very edges of the settlements. Recently, most of the cattle herds have been organised into certain kinds of pasturage associations that can formulate their strategy. However, the small-scale, “village-edge” mixed grazing system disappeared completely due to the factors described above. Pastures are now leased by tenant farmers and farming companies for five to ten years from the National Park and have no interest in tolerating the “village-edge” pasturage system. This traditional grazing structure may be reintroduced through long-term programmes, like the present LIFE+ project.   

The problem may be tackled by reforming the systems operating at present and the by the re-introduction of small-scale, “village-edge” grazing structure, for which, in theory, there is a renewed opportunity, as unemployment rates and food prices in the region are relatively high. In this situation the willingness to keep animals may be revived through long term programmes for families living on the very outskirts, where conditions for animal husbandry can be easily ensured.

 

 

Loss of biodiversity

The loss of biodiversity may be the result of either reversible or irreversible processes. The single most important irreversible factor is that the Nagy-szik was placed under the protection of Hortobágy National Park as late as in 1990. The proposal for protection had been rejected prior to that date so that large-scale (12-18,000) goose farming could be maintained within the framework of the local cooperative. This delay entailed a serious loss of local biodiversity. Magdolna-puszta was under the protection of the Hortobágy National Park, but remained a co-operative property until the end of the 1990s. The co-operative pursued its own agenda, and on many occasions even ploughed the pristine grasslands in the catchment area. 
Other detrimental processes are considered reversible by implementing the present project. The change of pasture structure root in political, economic and unfortunately conservation causes. Goose farming resulted in problems of such a great scale that the Hortobágy National Park was forced to make decisions that finally resulted in the complete ban of goose keeping in the protected areas. This ban did not differentiate between large scale farming and small scale extensive keeping, and led to the elimination of the system of village-edge mixed animal husbandry on the Hortobágy, which resulted ultimately in a large scale deterioration of the sodic lake habitat and loss of its biodiversity. (This system still persists on the southern edge of the Plains in Romania and Serbia.) Another problem is that the tenure system makes it very difficult to influence the farming methods and change of tenant, especially if the tenant disregards the changes required to meet conservationist criteria.    Farming on the project site is not implemented in accordance with organic land use practices so there is a certain extent of pollution present. In the case of organic agriculture the supervision of a certifying body provides an extra control tool in addition to the conservational regulations and thereby no pollution is present in these areas.   
A small proportion of the Nagy-szik is in private ownership and is on sale at the moment. The conservation of biodiversity can only be secured entirely, if this plot of land comes in possession of the Hortobágy National Park.

 

Conflicting interests of locals and conservationists

People’s livelihood has been closely connected to their immediate surroundings and in the Hortobágy there used to be a sophisticated extensive grazing system in use until a few decades ago. This, with the coming of modern agriculture disappeared and was displaced by large-scale farming techniques, but survived in the households, especially on the outskirts of town, where it made a significant contribution to the local economy. This small-scale mixed animal husbandry was based on the existence of commons (shared pastures) that was corrupted with the socialist system of “commons” that encouraged irresponsible land use. Still, these farming practices bridged over the period and had ‘managed’ the habitat until the site became protected. With the protected status came authority and rules that ended inappropriate land use, but at the same time some significant features were lost. This led to considerable tension between different interest groups. Locals perceive the National Park, and therefore environmental protection and conservation as a banning force that prevents them from using one of their most valuable assets. There is also a widely held belief that the land has to be cultivated and natural habitats are ‘wastelands’. At the same time there is also a greater awareness of the importance of conservation and environment, although this is an attitude only of more educated city dwellers. Unfortunately, most of the people still consider conservation as something forced upon them from above.   The decline of small-scale farming has greatly accelerated in the past 5 years when new regulations started coming into force with the EU accession, and, due to market pressures it declined further. At the same time there is no local knowledge or power to enforce an adequate grazing system. This led to an obvious tension, and locals started looking at the area adversely; a site for breeding mosquitoes and the presence of temporary water bodies are believed to have a negative effect on property prices. Unfortunately this view prevails within the local government as well, which may be an overall threat for the long-term survival of the site. Owing to the close proximity of the habitat to the town and the general attitude of the locals and the local authority, the development envisaged by them for the town, and especially for the immediate neighbourhood (including the strategic sites) ignores the natural heritage and the need and ways to conserve it.

 

Lack of possibility/infrastructure to raise awareness of natural heritage

The long-term survival of this site is in particular dependent on local attitudes towards our shared natural assets. The success of conservation work can be greatly enhanced and secured if there is an adequate level of local awareness and support. This support has to have a wide social basis, has to be inclusive of all social and age groups. Besides these people the wider community also needs to be addressed (e.g. tourists). Locals, stakeholders, officers of local authorities at present are not aware of the value of their immediate natural surrounding. One part of the problem is that these people for a long time have been made passive participants. There is also a view that natural, uncultivated land is a wasteland and represents no value. As people were forced off the land and out of the supporting systems of stewardship their meaningful connection to their locale was damaged or destroyed. This process has led to general negligence, indifference and negative attitudes. The National Park is looking for new ways to solve this disconnectedness, which is a task done with the increasing involvement of NGOs. The work is in its early stages, has been general in their objectives and not all stakeholder groups have been addressed yet. This activity has focussed mainly on the active, interested public so far. In this case there is a real need to create new ways to target the wider, passive public and broaden the social support for this specific habitat.  One of the main hindrances to such an achievement is the lack of a purpose-built, adequate infrastructure. There is an insufficient number of conventional visitor centres in the region, and their location is usually not as close to a natural habitat as that of the project’s planned eco-centre will be. That is why it is of crucial importance to construct an on-site demonstration centre where not only the natural habitat is presented, but the role locals play in it as well. In addition, this site is expected to increase their meaningful involvement in the site’s management as well.

 

Lack of education for stakeholders and the wider public

There is no real, readily available, up-to-the-minute information for the general public on actual conservation work: about what it involves, what actions are taken and what the supporting activities are. Therefore, ongoing landscape management is not put into context, and there is no opportunity for locals to get first-hand experience. In addition, people have practically no information on Natura 2000, LIFE and the EU’s conservation efforts in general, and consider conservation policies as a threat, which are formulated without their consent, implemented against their interests and which they cannot benefit from. The demonstration centre proposed above will efficiently tackle these problems by addressing the socio-economic spectrum both horizontally and vertically. Besides the ongoing non-scholar forms of education we intend to bring together different groups and thus create a synergy of conservational activities and locals’ lifestyle.

 

Presence of anthropogenic pollution and human-induced stresses

One of the main factors to trigger habitat degradation is the deliberate or ignorant disturbance and pollution in the area caused by local inhabitants The most serious source of pollution, though it is difficult to establish with any certainty whether it is the result of an activity on purpose or only the result of ignorance, is the fact that the municipal waste dump and wastewater pools of Balmazújváros were placed in the catchment areas of the sodic lakes, on protected land in Magdolna -puszta. These plants run by the local municipal government and used against existing EU regulations and policies have caused damage to both surface and ground waters as well as to the soil of such a sheer scale that is difficult even to estimate. The Hortobágy National Park have been submitting several proposals to the local government over the years to close the plants and move them off the protected land. Although these proposals were finally approved by the local government of Balmazújváros, no implementation plan has been devised for the necessary actions to be taken and for the rehabilitation of the area. Until it is realised, at times of strong winds tons of waste is blown around in the puszta.  
It was more of the result of an ad hoc action that the houses in the eastern outskirts of Balmazújváros were actually built into the lake. Parts of the lakebed were filled up with soil and rubble, which were to serve as firm basis for the houses. Those living in these homes demand the complete draining of the lake as they fear their homes will be negatively affected by the water. Such “developments” were only terminated when the site became protected by legislation.   Locals use the site as a mushroom and herb garden, and illegal fishing, woodcutting, motor sports are all regular. Besides the increased traffic which is difficult to control, other problems are that the conditions for breeding and feeding of birds are not ensured mostly due to the significant extent of illegal fishing, and the hunting for Sousliks is also of regular phenomenon. The ranger of the area is responsible for eight times of the size of the project site, therefore continuous presence of a ranger cannot be realised.   
Following WW2 the forestation programme was started to exploit salt-affected steppes, the trees bordering the area were planted then.  Due to the decreased intensity of grazing, invasive, exotic species appeared on the site in patches taking over habitats 1530 and 6250. Ground nesting Annex I and Annex II bird species abandoned the site as their ecological requirements for wide open spaces were no more provided.      
Parts of the sodic lakes were transformed into borrow pits while adobe bricks were produced. There is an abandoned 20 ha pit at the town-side of Magdolna-puszta, and on the 8 ha NW corner of Nagy-szik.    In spite of the protest of conservationists, a fishpond was constructed in the NE corner of the protected Nagy-szik, the accessibility of which should be regulated to minimise the disturbance it causes to wildlife.   

Unfortunately for most people (including the representatives of the town) the National Park represents a strict ban, and they consider protection of these areas unwanted, since it prevents them from their activities on many occasions detrimental to nature. The areas – especially those along the town’s edge are treated as wastelands, where locals very often keep their belongings there, use it for dumping or they fill up the shallows with debris and soil causing a great damage to the habitats.

 

Unregulated access to the area

The project site is exceptionally rich in natural and in particular ornithological assets (see: The Birds of the Hortobágy ed. Zoltán Ecsedi). It is regularly frequented by both organised groups of birdwatchers and individual ecotourists. However, there is no infrastructure to fulfil the demand, and tourists attend the site according to their own whims and ideas, resulting at times in small scale disturbance. We must note however, that although the extent of such disturbance is still smaller than that of the locals and their activities, it is not to be ignored in any circumstances. This threat significantly disturbs breeding and migrating shorebirds in the eastern side of Nagy-szik and north-western corner of Magdolna-puszta.