Čaplja (
Serbian
Serbian may refer to:
* Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular
**Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans
** Serbian language
** Serbian culture
**Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...
Cyrillic
The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...
: Чапља) is a projected river island (''ada'') in
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
, on the left bank of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
. According to the General Urbanistic Plan (GUP) of Belgrade, it will be formed in Belgrade's municipality of
Palilula.
Location
The area designated for the future island is located in the
Banat
Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...
section of the municipality of Palilula between the Danube and the ''Jojkićev Dunavac'' canal, ending section of the
Vizelj
The Vizelj () is a short channeled river in north-central Serbia, the left tributary to the Danube. During its entire flow it runs through the suburban section of Belgrade, on the territory of municipality of Palilula.
Course
Vizelj originate ...
stream in
Pančevački Rit
Pančevački Rit ( sr-cyr, Панчевачки рит) is a small geographical area in south-western Banat, Serbia. It is situated between the rivers Danube and Tamiš, in Belgrade's municipality of Palilula.
Features
Its wetland was cons ...
(''Jojkić's Little Danube'', named so after the former
mayor of Belgrade
The mayor of Belgrade () is the head of the City of Belgrade (the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia). The mayor acts on behalf of the city, and performs an Executive (government), executive function in th ...
,
Đurica Jojkić
Đurica Jojkić ( sr-cyr, Ђурица Јојкић; 1914 in Turija – 1981 in Belgrade) was a Yugoslav politician and lawyer.
Biography
He was born in 1914 in Turija near Srbobran. He studied in gymnasiums in Srbobran and Vrbas, before f ...
) on the east, and the weekend settlement of
Crvenka
Crvenka () is a small town located in the municipality of Kula in the West Bačka District, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The town has a Serbian ethnic majority, and it had a population of 9,001 in 2011.
Name
In Serbian, th ...
on the west.
At present, the designated area has two major sections: eastern and smaller one is a small island of
Kožara
Kožara (Serbian Cyrillic: Кожара) is a river island (''ada'') in Serbia, located on the left bank of the Danube. It is part of the Belgrade City proper and belongs to the Belgrade's municipality of Palilula.
Location
Kožara is a trian ...
on the ''Jojkićev Dunavacs mouth into the Danube, and western and much larger
floodplain
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...
between the Danube and the embankment which protects the inner areas of Pančevački Rit (
Krnjača, Crvenka). The area is floodable, thickly forested, uninhabited (that is, without permanent population) and densely crisscrossed by the elongated
bog
A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and musk ...
s and slow streams.
Name
Except for the island of Kožara, the major part of the area has no name of its own though it used to be called Crvenka, just like the modern weekend settlement. City government proposed temporary name of ''čaplja'', which is Serbian for
heron
Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...
. It is decided that each project, proposed to the city government for the future island, should also propose a name for it.
Formation
The projected area of the island is , which is twice as large as
Ada Ciganlija
Ada Ciganlija ( sr-Cyrl, Ада Циганлија, ), colloquially shortened to Ada, is a river island that has artificially been turned into a peninsula, located in the Sava River's course through central Belgrade, Serbia. The name can also ...
and three times larger than
Veliko Ratno Ostrvo. The formation should be achieved by digging a canal along the existing embankment, which would turn the wetland into a real island. Though some articles already nicknamed it the ''twin island of Veliko Ratno Ostrvo'' (which is away), Čaplja is going to be almost three times larger in area, differently shaped, it will not have any land of bridge connection to each other, and unlike Veliko Ratno Ostrvo which is protected by the law and any human interference is prohibited, future island is projected as the major tourist and recreational attraction.
It is intended to keep and protect the existing autochthonous vegetation, wetland and marshy
ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...
s. Also, the forests should be repopulated by the natural species of trees that grow in these areas, and even the existing
poplar plantations will be replaced by the native sorts of trees. It is also projected to keep the vegetation in the widest possible range, so the present view of the left bank of the Danube should stay intact. When the construction of the leisure facilities is all done, it is expected not to cover more than a 40% of the island, while 60% will remain intact natural environment.
Function
The recreational complex is envisioned for the use during entire year. The canal which will separate it from the embankment will be navigable and used for nautical sports. Across the embankment, a large golf terrains are projected, so as a marina which will connect the island to the ports in Belgrade ( away) and
Zemun
Zemun ( sr-cyrl, Земун, ; ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality in the city of Belgrade, Serbia. Zemun was a separate town that was absorbed into Belgrade in 1934. It lies on the right bank of the Danube river, upstream from downtown ...
. Also, a road connection to the road of ''Zrenjaninski put'' will be constructed.
As the future island is still just a vision of the city government, and no accepted plan or a project for it does exist, it is only revealed that facilities on the island will comprise an
aqua park.
Current status
City government of the
Democratic Party, apart from envisioning it in 2003, didn't do anything to push the project. After the 2013 change, when
Serbian Progressive Party
The Serbian Progressive Party (, SNS) is a major populist, catch-all party, catch-all List of political parties in Serbia, political party in Serbia. It has been the Ruling party, ruling party since 2012. Miloš Vučević, the former prime mi ...
took over the Belgrade's government, they completely turned to the
Belgrade Waterfront
Belgrade Waterfront (), is an urban renewal development project headed by the Government of Serbia aimed at changing Belgrade's cityscape and economy by revitalizing the Sava amphitheater, between the Belgrade Fair and Branko's bridge, includin ...
project on the
Sava river
The Sava, is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reaches Serbia, fee ...
, apparently putting the Čaplja project at hold by 2017, if not abandoning it completely.
References
Sources
* Generalni plan Beograda 2021, page 259
Projekat “Čaplja” - rečni park Dunava na Novoj adi u BeograduProject “Heron” - Danube river park and the new river island in Belgrade
External links
Map of the projected Čaplja island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caplja
Neighborhoods of Belgrade
River islands of Serbia
Banat
Islands of the Danube
Palilula, Belgrade