Retezat is particularly notable for its biodiverse flora, with over 1,000 species of plants present within the park. It is also home to some of the last remaining pristine old-growth forests in Europe. Despite its protected status, recent decades have seen an increase in damaging activities such as logging and sheep-grazing in the park, as well as threats to its status as public propriety.
History
The Retezat region has been a subject of scientific interest, particularly with regard to its flora, since at least the early 19th century.[3] During the 1930s, several scientific personalities like Alexandru Borza and Emil Racoviţă campaigned for the creation of nature reserves in the country.[4] In 1935, the Tătărescu government set aside 100 square kilometers of the Retezat Mountains, creating the country's first national park. It took four more years for legislation to be passed regarding the park's status, paving the way for all future protected areas of Romania.[4]
In 2006 the Romanian state decided in favor of heirs to the Austro-Hungarian aristocratic family Kendeffy, who claimed 10,000 hectares of land in the Retezat Mountains, including large tracts of the park, under a law allowing the restitution of propriety seized by previous regimes. The Romanian Academy, who was granted the land in the 1930s, challenged the decision. After a lengthy trial, the land restitution was deemed illegal by a 2022 court decision, and the park returned to being state propriety.[9][10]
Retezat on Romanian stamp
Description
The park contains more than sixty peaks over 2,300 metres (7,500 ft) and about eighty glacier lakes, of which 54 are permanent.[11]Peleaga, the highest peak of the Retezat Mountains, 2,509 metres (8,232 ft) is located in the park.[12] Currently the park occupies 380.47 km2 (146.90 sq mi).[13]
Mountains and pines in the Retezat National Park
Flora
The flora of Retezat demonstrates "exceptional biodiversity", consisting of approximately 1,190 plant species, of which 130 have the "endangered" or "vulnerable" status. More than a third of Romania's flora can be found in this area.[8][14]Mountain pine and juniper habitats are dominant, with spruce and rhododendron also common.[8]
The park is often described as containing ”Europe's last intact forest", as it harbors one of the few remaining intact old-growth forest landscapes and the largest single area of pristine mixed forest on the continent.[15][16][17] The Gemenele ("The Twins" in Romanian) scientific reserve is a strictly protected area of the park enclosing 1,800 hectares of intact old-growth forest.[5]
^ abIUCN (1995). "3.6 Retezat National Park, Romania". Best Practice for Conservation Planning in Rural Areas: Biological and Landscape Diversity in Central and Eastern Europe. Gland, Switzerland, and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. pp. 39–45. ISBN978-2-8317-0286-5.
^Planet, Lonely; Averbuck, Alexis; Bain, Carolyn; Bindloss, Joe; Blasi, Abigail; Christiani, Kerry; Duca, Marc Di; Filou, Emilie; Ham, Anthony (2017). National Parks of Europe. Lonely Planet. ISBN978-1-78701-074-1.
Jiu Valley Portal - the home of the Official Jiu Valley City Websites and a gateway to the Retezat National Park and other destinations in the Transylvanian Alps