General description of the case study
The Slovenian Case study is located in the Podravska Statistical Region (Slovene: Podravska regija). The region is a Low-altitude Alpine region about 35% mountainous and about 65% lowland. Its name comes from the Drava River and includes land on both banks along its course through Slovenia, as well as the Pohorje mountains in the northeast of the region. The area is an alluvial plain of the river Drava in north-eastern Slovenia. The Drava is used for the production of hydroelectricity and the fertile land around it is used for agriculture. The share of job vacancies in all available jobs is among the highest in Slovenia and the region has a positive net migration rate but a very high natural decrease, which means an overall decrease in the population. In 2020, the population was 325,994. The total area of the region is 2,170 km².
The area is administratively divided into 41 municipalities, each one with individual rights and responsibilities in the management of land use and wastewater.
The Podravska region generated 12.8% of the national GDP. The main sectors of the economy are tourism, aluminium production and chemical industry, energy, agriculture (arable land, cattle grazing (pastures), vineyards, orchards), forestry and other services. There are 10,990 agricultural holdings and on average 7.2 hectares of utilised agricultural area per agricultural holding. The western part of Pohorje is an important skiing destination. Due to its mild climate, relatively low height and international skiing importance, artificial snow is used in early winter and early spring. In this area people live in settlements, most of which are located along the river Drava.
Water is a resource of national importance and is therefore generally regulated by the State, as is in the case of the Dravsko polje study area with two decrees on water protection zones (WPZ). Climatological data for the case study area is used from four automatic meteorological stations, figure 3 (black triangles on the map), located in the vicinity of both pilot areas (red dots on the map). Length of time series: ~20 years for the oldest automatic stations.
Variables: temperature, precipitation and reference evapotranspiration.
The climate has continental characteristics, with an average annual rainfall of about 1000 mm, with hot summers and cold winters.
Pilot area Pohorje, Slovenia
The pilot area of Pohorje in Slovenia is focused on monitoring drought in agriculture. The existing tools for water monitoring, management and agricultural techniques were presented to the relevant stakeholders and target groups at the workshops. The tools for water monitoring are the following (ARSO):
- Agrometeorological forecast for 10 days (meteorological water balance);
- Crop water use (drought stress);
- Irrigation forecast;
- Drought monitoring;
- Agricultural soil water conservation techniques:
The aim of the workshops is to exchange opinions, needs, feedback and suggestions for improvements of the water management tools, as well as to provide the basis for the structure of the “LESS LAND TAKE” toolbox. Awareness raising events will trigger actions in order to promote optimal water management tools for sustainable soil protection in the Pohorje area. There is a special focus on how different stakeholders, target groups and policy makers can all together support integration into daily practice of the information collected by way of these tools.
