The Journal is published by the Nature Conservation Agency of the Czech Republic in cooperation with the Cave Administration of the Czech Republic, the Krkonoše Mts. National Park Administration, the Bohemian Forest Mts. National Park Administration, the Podyjí National Park Administration and the The Bohemian Switzerland National Park Administration. It has been published since 1946.
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Nature Conservation 2/2009 — 21. 4. 2009 — Nature Conservation Legislation — Print article in pdf
Prohibition of Building New Settlement Units
Over the last twenty years, developers have been strongly seeking for building in the landscape outside built-up areas.
Over the last twenty years, developers have been strongly seeking for building in the landscape outside built-up areas. It has been caused by the fact that the appropriate administrative tools in protecting the landscape outside built-up areas are not supplied with economic ones. Thus, open-air building is profitable for developers. In the National Parks and Protected Landscape Areas, i.e. in the large-size Protected Specially Areas, the landscape outside built-up areas is protected by the prohibition of building new settlement units. Nevertheless, the term “settlement units” has not been defined in the current system of law in the Czech Republic. It can be interpreted that it is a unit of human settlements spatially and possibly also functionally separated from other settlement units. It is a vague legal term which should be explained and interpreted in the framework of the particular decision-making processes. The Supreme Administrative Court judgement No. 5 As 48/2006 of August 29, 2008 deals in details with the issue of new human settlements. The Court confirmed the position of the Ministry of the Environment of Czech Republic, explaining and interpreting the term. The Court provided the legal opinion, that the term “settlement”, “settlement unit” and “residential unit” may not be related to permanent dwelling of persons. Therefore, according to the Supreme Administrative Court opinion, accommodation facilities and facilities for sports, games and leisure time spending can be considered as human settlements. The State Nature Conservancy authorities have been facing huge pressure aiming at locating such facilities just within the large-size Specially Protected Areas.