CIPRA representatives:

Personal tools

  Search filter  

News

The "Allgäu Moor Alliance" wins the German Government's Competition for Large-Scale Nature Conservation Projects

Jul 09, 2009 / alpMedia
The winners of the German government's "idee.natur - Large-scale Nature Conservation Projects and Rural Development" competition were announced at the end of June 2009. Five regions came out on top with their concepts for new large-scale nature conservation projects. Over € 50 million will be invested in these regions over the next ten years. The "Allgäu Moor Alliance" was the winner in the Moors Category.
The "Allgäu Moor Alliance" aims to protect the moors as a contribution to climate protection and flood control, species conservation and protection of agriculture.
Image caption:
The "Allgäu Moor Alliance" aims to protect the moors as a contribution to climate protection and flood control, species conservation and protection of agriculture. © www.idee-natur.de
The German nationwide "idee.natur" competition was launched in July 2007 by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment and the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. The aim of the competition was to develop new forward-looking concepts for large scale nature conservancy projects in Germany, with models for linking nature conservancy and rural development.
A total of 122 regions entered the competition. Astrid Klug of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety thinks that the large number of entries shows that the regions could see the potential opportunities arising from close cooperation between nature conservation and regional development in rural areas.
The territory of the winning "Allgäu Moor Alliance" project covers the Bavarian rural districts of Ostallgäu and Oberallgäu and is one of the regions of Germany with the greatest expanse of moorland and litter meadows. The prize money will be used to implement planned measures (scheduled to run from July 2009 until the end of 2020). One of the principal aims is to restore the moorland ecosystems to their natural condition. 600 hectares of intact moorland are to be preserved and 300 hectares of degraded moorland will be restored to their natural wetland condition. The rural development element of the project has two main areas of emphasis: the first focuses on the agricultural use of the litter meadows and the expansion of landscape conservation as an additional support for farmers. The second focuses on nature tourism. It is primarily designed to provide incentives for the development of rural areas.
Sources: www.bmu.de/naturschutz/biologische/vielfalt (de), www.idee-natur.de/allgaeu110.html (de)