Sudargas hillforts need €13 million to stop erosion

Experts have identified a way to stabilise the slopes of the Sudargas hillforts, but the Šakiai District Municipality does not have the funds to carry out the work, LRT reported. The municipality plans to seek support from the state and European Union funds.

The hillforts attract thousands of visitors each year, who arrive by car and boat, according to Sudargas’ elder. However, the slopes are increasingly slipping.

“Last winter there was a lot of snow and little frost, so the conditions were not particularly favourable for the hillfort and its slopes. The hillforts are already waterlogged because of springs, and after the heavy rains in summer we can see newly formed landslides,” Sudargas’ elder Rita Grigaitienė said.

The hillforts, located within a 13,000-hectare area, became even more popular after a sculpture connected with J. D. Salinger’s novel “The Catcher in the Rye” was installed there six years ago.

Some of the most damaged areas have been reinforced with woven willow structures and shrubs have been planted, but these measures provided only a temporary solution. Barriers have also been installed for visitors’ safety.

“People who come to Pilaitė hillfort always ask, ‘Why are those barriers there, so we don’t fall off?’ I tell them, ‘Definitely not. Look, a piece of the slope could break away at any time and you could tumble down.’ It is strictly forbidden to go beyond the barriers,” said Valerija Andriukaitienė, a librarian and guide in Sudargas.

A technical project has been prepared to preserve the hillforts and stop the slopes from moving. Experts found that deep springs are eroding the steep slopes, water is accumulating between layers of moraine soil, and the Nemunas River is washing away the foot of the hillforts.

“Geotechnical and geological studies were needed, as well as bathymetric surveys and topographical mapping. These were very, very expensive and extensive studies,” said Inga Navlickienė, a Šakiai municipality specialist.

The cost of restoring the three hillforts is estimated at about €13 million. The municipality says it cannot afford the work. As the hillforts are a state-protected monument, it plans to seek state funding and look for support from European Union funds.

“We are trying to find solutions and sources of funding. In any case, the likelihood that the government will find the money is high, because such a burden would probably be unbearable for the municipality. It could not afford to cover 50 percent of the costs,” Šakiai District Mayor Raimondas Januševičius said.

The Sudargas hillfort complex consists of Vorpilis, Pilaitė and Bevardis hillforts. Work would begin on the Nemunas side, with groynes constructed first, followed by repairs to Vorpilis, the hillfort most affected by erosion. The first stage is expected to cost more than €4 million.