Territorial System of Ecological Stability as a regional example for Green Infrastructure planning in the Czech Republic

The  concept  of  Green  Infrastructure  (GI)  is  still  relatively  new  in  the  Czech Republic. When looking at the definition of GI, one can recognise a  relationship  with  the  Czech  Territorial  System  of  Ecological  Stability  (TSES),  which  is  defined  as  “an  interconnected  system  of  natural  as  well as modified semi-natural ecosystems keeping the natural balance”. TSES is a designed system and is an integral part of territorial plans. This article focuses on TSES and its relationship to GI, how it is implemented in  a  Czech  case  study  representing  intensively  used  agricultural  region  in  South  Moravia,  what  the  main  obstacles  are  to  its  implementation  and how TSES can contribute to the connectivity of the landscape. Our results show that nearly two thirds of the planned TSES in the case study area  already  exist  to  some  degree.  There  is  a  difference  between  the  number  and  the  area  of  existing  TSES  elements:  the  area  of  existing  elements  shows  higher  relative  values  than  the  number.  This  is  mainly  due to bio-centres that exist in large forest complexes and their pre-set minimal parameters. Creation of TSES elements increases connectivity of GI, especially those characterised as core areas and bridges