Beaver
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An infrastructure project in the Brdy region of the Czech Republic which had been stalled for over 7 years due to permit issues was completed by the local beaver population saving the government Rs 10 crore.
According to a report in Radio Prague International, the administration of the Brdy protected landscape area had received the approval to construct a dam, however, they had not yet received building permits from the Vltava River Basin authorities. Meanwhile, the local beaver colony completed the project overnight.
Bohumil Fiser, head of the Brdy Protected Landscape Area Administration said, "The Military Forest Management and the Vltava River Basin were negotiating with each other to set up the project and address issues regarding ownership of land."
"The beavers beat [us] to it, saving us CZK 30 million (Rs 10 crore). They built the dams without any project documentation and for free," he added as per the report.
The aim of the dam project by the Czech Republic was to revitalise an area of the Brdy region that was damaged by the construction of a military base. A bypass gully was developed as part of the military base which drained natural water resources in the area. The government wished to restore the area but were faced with a few hurdles, ownership of the land being one.
Beavers are semi-aquatic rodents that use rocks, mud, and wood to dam up streams which creates wetlands known as “beaver ponds."
Beaver ponds act as sources of food, and protection from predators for the rodents. These structures are also habitats for other species.
"Beavers are able to build a dam in one night, two nights at the most. While people have to get building permits, get the building project approved, and find the money for it. But of course a digger working on his own could build it in about a week," said zoologist Jiri Vlcek.
The handy work of the beavers was inspected by environmentalists who said the structure would last a long time and aid the aquatic life of the region to thrive with rare stone crayfish, frogs and other species.