Evaluation of the effectiveness of planning tools in the protection of landscape values, on the example of the Wysowa Zdrój village

Landscape values are defined in the Polish nature protection law as the natural, cultural and visual values of a given area formed by the nature forces or human activity. Protection of landscape values is realized by the establishment of nature conservation categories with different conservation regimes. No less important instrument for the protection of landscape amenities is spatial planning. This is particularly important in areas exposed to urbanization pressures due to the attractiveness of the area for the development of residential and tourist functions. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of different instruments for the protection of valuable landscape structures. The research was conducted in the Wysowa village, a health and tourist resort. The analysis showed that the most stable elements of the landscape structure are forests. The most vulnerable to irreversible changes are arable land and pastures. Despite many provisions regarding the preservation of scenic exposure, landforms, historical layout of fields and buildings, one can get the impression that activities in the field of preserving landscape values are not strictly followed. This is due to the fact that some of the analysed documents do not have the character of commonly binding laws. In the documents legally binding at the municipal level, the provisions relating to the need to preserve protection of scenic values are very general and lack detailed guidelines regarding the specific measures that should be applied. As a result, there is a considerable flexibility in land use changes, which reduces the protection of landscape values.