Lake Šmartinsko was created in 1970 by damming the Koprivnica River and building the Loče Barrier to protect the city of Celje from floods and to supply water to Celje's industry. Due to tertiarisation processes, the demand for water has decreased and the present-day role of the lake is mainly recreational. In the first chapters I have geographically oriented the lake in space by means of physical and socio-geographical elements and described in more detail the formation of the lake and its tourist and recreational points. In the last chapter I presented the results of the lake water analysis that have been carried out on the lake for more than 20 years. The findings are not encouraging, as the amounts of ammonium and nitrates in the lake are increasing, mainly coming from surrounding agricultural properties. The oxygen levels are also low, and the amount of organic carbon and phosphorus have not changed significantly over time. Because the lake is a popular recreational destination, drastic measures will be needed to improve the quality of the water and thus preserve the 'water pearl' on the edge of the Celje basin.
|