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  Similar
to many other civilized countries, the history of protected areas counts
centuries in Georgia. For many centuries people protected some areas for
religious beliefs. There were so called ‘icon forests’, royal and feudal
hunting lands and church forests in the mountains of Georgia, where felling
was prohibited and care was taken to grow game animals and birds. One may
say those were actually typical sanctuaries of that time.
In the 17th century King Vakhtang VI issued a ‘Code of Laws’ that identified
the area of Koruli as a protected site where felling and walking were prohibited
and the area was guarded by rangers.
First protected areas that were created on the basis on scientific environmental
data appeared in Georgia in 1910s when the country became part of the Russian
Empire and returned to the European cultural environment.
That stage was marked by the creation of the Lagodekhi reserve in 1912
that became the first reserve in the Caucasus region.
First protected areas in Adjara – the Kintrishi and Tsiskara state reserves
– were created in 1959. In 1961, the Tsiskara reserve was for some reasons
cancelled by a decision of the central USSR Government.
Yet even before the Soviet epoch, on November 3, 1912 famous geographer
professor A. Krasnov opened the Batumi Botanical Garden on the slopes of
Mtsvane Kontskhi (the Green Cape) in Adjara covered with wonderful intact
Colchic forests that counted centuries of age. This paragon of nature actually
represents a natural extension of the Mtirala National Park today.
This part of the world-known Batumi Botanical Garden can be considered
as a predecessor of protected areas in Adjara in general and the newly
created Mtirala National Park in particular.
  The Mtirala National Park was established in 2006 through initiative of
the Government of Adjara Autonomous Republic and the Agency of Protected
areas of the Ministry of Environment Protection and Natural Resources with
WWF’s assistance and financial support provided by the Norwegian Government.
It’s no coincidence that the new park has been established in the part
of the Adjara-Imereti Range covered with relict Colchic forest, an area
most influenced by humid climate, and comprises the area of the former
Tsiskara State Reserve as well.
Today the Mtirala National Park is a model protected area in Georgia combining
conservation with mountain tourism and ecotourism, which is sure to increase
the flow of visitors and attract new investments, thus opening positive
economic perspectives for Adjara. The inflow of visitors would mean sustainable
livelihoods for local communities, which would increase their motivation
for conserving the local intact wildlife, i.e. would enact the principle
of the Park helping the region and the region helping the Park.
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| The
project was implemented by WWF Norway and WWF Caucasus,
with the financial support of the Norwegian Government. |
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