The “Connection of Ljubljana to the Ljubljansko Barje Nature Park” project will provide the citizens access to the unique natural environment for leisure time activities.

The aim is to link the city with the Ljubljansko barje Nature Park on the north-south axis and also to clean, green and, with a few pieces of urban equipment, convert the unregulated and even degraded area into a recreation zone.

Situation before the intervention:

• The area is covered with enormous quantities of construction, asbestos, bulky and municipal waste;
• there are smaller objects located at the respective area (allotments, fences, etc.);
• a large part of the surface is covered with non-native invasive plant species that need to be removed;
• the area is overgrown with non-indigenous vegetation; numerous trees have been damaged by glaze ice;
• there were several active allotments managed in the area that were planned to be preserved with certain limitations, but the allotment owners decided to move away;
• since a certain part of the area falls under the NATURA 2000 project it is necessary to adjust the primary project to the relevant restrictions.

Course of action:

Already executed activities:

• Removal of all waste: 300 t of construction materials, 15 t of asbestos waste, large amount of used tyres and other municipal waste;
• removal of non-indigenous vegetation, pruning of trees and hedges after the glaze ice disaster – 150 m3 of biomass has already been transported for further processing;
• removal of non-native plant species;
• removal of objects: manual and mechanical demolition and cleaning-up of the allotments;
• preserving the existing concrete slabs (picnic areas);
• deep soil mulching (11,000 m2) and surface mulching of the meadow (24,000 m2).

Projected activities until 9 May 2014:

• The City of Ljubljana cleaning campaign;
• planting of 90 trees;
• greening of the surface damaged by various interventions;
• gravelling of the existing paths;
• arrangement of the footpaths with wood chips in the area of the Ljubljansko Barje Nature Park;
• construction of a small bridge over the canal at the park’s entrance;
• installation of the safety fence at the entrance bridge;
• preparation and placing of information panels;
• installation of pieces of urban equipment – benches, children's playground, etc.

The project value is estimated to approx. 200,000 EUR. The project was designed within the scope of a series of exhibitions entitled VIZIJE SO by the Architects' Society of Ljubljana with the purpose to promote the unutilized areas of the city.