The document discusses the urban forest management of Ljubljana, Slovenia. It notes that Ljubljana was a finalist for European Green Capital in 2016. The city has over 1,444 hectares of protected urban forest, with intensive recreational use by over 1.7 million visitors annually to the Rožnik urban forest. Managing the urban forest presents challenges like private ownership of land and damage from ice storms. Key areas discussed include the forests around Castle Hill, Rožnik, and Šmarna Gora.

1. City of Ljubljana –
Urban forest
Management
Zala Strojin Božič and Jurij Kobe
Department for Environmental Protection
Final conference of project EMoNFUr
Milano, 17.6.2014
www.ljubljana.si

2. Area

3. European green capital
• 4 applications, 2 finals
• 12 environmental indicator areas
• winner will be announced on 24th of
JuneJune
(2010 Stockholm, 2011 Hamburg, 2012 Vitoria-
Gasteiz, 2013 Nantes, 2014 Copenhagen, 2015
Bristol)
2016: Essen, Ljubljana, Nijmegen, Oslo, Umea

4. European green capital
• climate change
• green infrastucture
• nature and biodiversity

5. • good preservation, high naturalness of forest
• natural regeneration
• free access
• intensive recreational use
Urban forest
• intensive recreational use
• 1444 ha protected by decree

6. • Strategic plan of the City of Ljubljana (2010)
• Decree on Areas of Forests with a Special
Purpose (2010)
• Forest management plan
Regulations
• Forest management plan
• The City of Ljubljana Environmental
Protection Program (2007-2013; 2014-2020)
• Strategy for local rural development

7. Urban forest

8. • ownership (fragmentation; private ownership)
• owners : visitors (over 1,7 mio visitors/year in
urban forest Rožnik; official and unofficial
Challenges
urban forest Rožnik; official and unofficial
paths and trails)
• ice storm (30-50 % damage of forests)

9. • Castle hill
city center
core recreational area
Management
core recreational area
one of the most important tourist spots in the
city
public ownership

10. Management

11. • Rožnik urban forest
landscape park
green connection between city center and
Management
green connection between city center and
suburbs
recreation hot spot
over 1,7 mio visitors/year
1/3 public ownership

12. Management

13. • Šmarna gora periurban forest
pilgrimage path/recreation hot spot
steep slopes; danger of hazardous or
Management
steep slopes; danger of hazardous or
demolished trees
private ownership
infrastructure

14. Management

15. Thank you for your attention!
please contact: Jurij Kobe, jurij.kobe@ljubljana.si