Mountain Areas in Europe: Analysis of Mountain Areas in EU Member States, Acceding and Other European Countries. Schuler, M., Stucki, E., Roque, O., & Perlik, M. Volume 2004:1 , Nordregio, Stockholm, Sweden, 2004.
abstract   bibtex   
[Excerpt: Executive summary] [::Introduction] The global importance of mountains is increasingly recognised, as shown by the inclusion of a specific chapter in 'Agenda 21' and the declaration of the year 2002 as the International Year of Mountains. Europe has many mountain ranges, occurring in almost all parts of the continent; most European countries have at least some mountains. These mountains are very diverse at every scale, in terms of climate, ecology, economy and other characteristics. European mountain landscapes are cultural landscapes reflecting long-term interactions of human beings with biophysical systems. [\n] Europe's mountains are of vital importance to the continent's population in four main ways: 1) as 'water towers' supplying much of the continent's water, especially in summer, and as sources of hydroelectric power; 2) as centres of diversity, both biological and cultural; 3) for providing opportunities for recreation and tourism, based on natural attributes and cultural heritage; and 4) because of their sensitivity to environmental change, as manifest in the melting of glaciers. Mountain geo- and ecosystems are highly sensitive to environmental change, and extreme events likely to derive from climate change may have major consequences in both mountain areas and downstream. While such general statements are relatively easy to make, there is generally a lack of data for developing policies and evaluating their impacts. Even where such data are available for a number of countries, differences in definitions and methodologies of data collection and analysis make comparisons difficult. [\n] In the context of European cohesion and enlargement, mountain regions are considered as having permanent natural handicaps, due to topographic and climatic restrictions on economic activity and/or peripherality. All acceding countries except the Baltic States and Malta have mountains. As Europe expands and becomes increasingly complex, future policies for mountain areas must be based on a thorough understanding of the current social, economic, and environmental situation and the degree of success of past and current policies directly or indirectly affecting these areas. Thus, the aim of this study is to provide an in-depth analysis of the mountain areas of the 15 countries of the European Union (EU), the 10 acceding countries, the two accession countries and Norway and Switzerland, referred to below as 'the study area'. [\n] The study has three complementary sets of objectives: [::1)] to develop a common delineation of the mountain areas of the 29 countries of the study area; [::2)] to compile statistical and geographical information necessary to describe and analyse the situation in these mountain areas (including in relation to national and EU references); to develop a typology of these areas; and to create a database on which future analyses and policies may be based; [::3)] to analyse the measures and policies implemented by national governments and the EU with regard to mountain areas; to evaluate the impacts of these measures and policies; and to develop proposals for adjustments to make them better suited to the situation of mountain areas, their needs and opportunities. [\n] The study was undertaken by a consortium of 22 partners from across Europe, led by Nordregio, the Nordic Centre for Spatial Development
@book{schulerMountainAreasEurope2004,
  title = {Mountain Areas in {{Europe}}: Analysis of Mountain Areas in {{EU}} Member States, Acceding and Other {{European}} Countries},
  author = {Schuler, M. and Stucki, E. and Roque, O. and Perlik, M.},
  year = {2004},
  volume = {2004:1},
  publisher = {{Nordregio}},
  address = {{Stockholm, Sweden}},
  abstract = {[Excerpt: Executive summary]

[::Introduction] The global importance of mountains is increasingly recognised, as shown by the inclusion of a specific chapter in 'Agenda 21' and the declaration of the year 2002 as the International Year of Mountains. Europe has many mountain ranges, occurring in almost all parts of the continent; most European countries have at least some mountains. These mountains are very diverse at every scale, in terms of climate, ecology, economy and other characteristics. European mountain landscapes are cultural landscapes reflecting long-term interactions of human beings with biophysical systems. 

[\textbackslash n] Europe's mountains are of vital importance to the continent's population in four main ways: 1) as 'water towers' supplying much of the continent's water, especially in summer, and as sources of hydroelectric power; 2) as centres of diversity, both biological and cultural; 3) for providing opportunities for recreation and tourism, based on natural attributes and cultural heritage; and 4) because of their sensitivity to environmental change, as manifest in the melting of glaciers. Mountain geo- and ecosystems are highly sensitive to environmental change, and extreme events likely to derive from climate change may have major consequences in both mountain areas and downstream. While such general statements are relatively easy to make, there is generally a lack of data for developing policies and evaluating their impacts. Even where such data are available for a number of countries, differences in definitions and methodologies of data collection and analysis make comparisons difficult. 

[\textbackslash n] In the context of European cohesion and enlargement, mountain regions are considered as having permanent natural handicaps, due to topographic and climatic restrictions on economic activity and/or peripherality. All acceding countries except the Baltic States and Malta have mountains. As Europe expands and becomes increasingly complex, future policies for mountain areas must be based on a thorough understanding of the current social, economic, and environmental situation and the degree of success of past and current policies directly or indirectly affecting these areas. Thus, the aim of this study is to provide an in-depth analysis of the mountain areas of the 15 countries of the European Union (EU), the 10 acceding countries, the two accession countries and Norway and Switzerland, referred to below as 'the study area'. 

[\textbackslash n] The study has three complementary sets of objectives: [::1)] to develop a common delineation of the mountain areas of the 29 countries of the study area; [::2)] to compile statistical and geographical information necessary to describe and analyse the situation in these mountain areas (including in relation to national and EU references); to develop a typology of these areas; and to create a database on which future analyses and policies may be based; [::3)] to analyse the measures and policies implemented by national governments and the EU with regard to mountain areas; to evaluate the impacts of these measures and policies; and to develop proposals for adjustments to make them better suited to the situation of mountain areas, their needs and opportunities. 

[\textbackslash n] The study was undertaken by a consortium of 22 partners from across Europe, led by Nordregio, the Nordic Centre for Spatial Development},
  isbn = {91-89332-35-0},
  keywords = {*imported-from-citeulike-INRMM,~INRMM-MiD:c-11835831,europe,european-union,mountainous-areas},
  lccn = {INRMM-MiD:c-11835831}
}
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