Swabian Alb biosphere area

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Location of the Swabian Alb biosphere reserve

The Swabian Alb biosphere area is an 85,270 hectare biosphere reserve that includes large parts of the Middle Swabian Alb and its foreland. It was established in January 2008 as a biosphere area of ​​the state of Baden-Württemberg . Since May 2009 the area has also been recognized as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve .

Biosphere reserve or biosphere area

The term “biosphere reserve” stands internationally and at the federal level for the exemplary coexistence of economy, ecology and social issues. The state of Baden-Württemberg deliberately decided against the expression “reserve” and instead opted for the term “biosphere area”. In connection with the term “UNESCO”, the term UNESCO biosphere reserve is used in accordance with UNESCO specifications .

location

View of the former military training area Münsingen, which is centrally located in the biosphere area

The biosphere area has a north-south extension of around 40 kilometers and extends from the foreland of the central Swabian Alb over its Alb eaves and the Alb plateau to the Danube in the south.

An important component is the former military training area Münsingen with the abandoned village of Gruorn , which is centrally located in the protected area .

history

Michael Succow and Markus Rösler from the NABU Federal Association came up with the idea for a Swabian Alb biosphere area in October 1991 . This was followed from 1992 to 1997 by Rösler's dissertation on the topic of jobs through nature conservation using the example of the biosphere reserves and the model region of the Middle Swabian Alb . She laid the planning foundations for a biosphere reserve. At the same time and until 2005, Rösler and others carried out years of lobbying work for this project, particularly through the NABU federal and regional association. As early as the mid-1990s, this included a nationwide “sun list” of possible biosphere reserves in Germany via the NABU Federal Committee for Large Protected Areas, support for the PLENUM model project of the state of Baden-Württemberg and for the Region aktiv competition of the Federal Ministry for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture . However, the realization only took place in the context of the abandonment of the military use of the military training area Gutsgebiet Münsingen and its conversion in 2005 as well as due to the positioning of Günther Oettinger, who came into office as Prime Minister in 2005 . In his first government declaration in 2005, he described the biosphere area as the state's "lighthouse project" and thus enabled the realization of the first large-scale conservation area in Baden-Württemberg. Everyone involved in the planning process agreed from the start that the outstanding natural and cultural-historical value of the 6,700 hectare former military training area of ​​the Münsingen manor and its surroundings could only be preserved with a large-scale, integrative concept. The towns and communities of Bad Urach , Münsingen and Römerstein in the Reutlingen district , which are directly adjacent to the military training area , were the first communities to want to join a biosphere area. The more spacious region around the former military training area also increasingly became the focus of planning. The very committed nature conservation, environmental, agricultural, economic and tourism associations contributed to this.

On January 1, 2006, the then State Nature Conservation Act of Baden-Württemberg came into force. This means that a separate law for the establishment of a biosphere reserve / area was no longer required, but “only” an ordinance to set up a corresponding area. Just three weeks later, an information event for local politicians from the region on the subject of the biosphere area took place. The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Food and Rural Areas , the Tübingen regional council and the Reutlingen , Esslingen and Alb-Danube districts were involved . As part of this event, the eponymous name of the Swabian Alb biosphere area was jointly developed. What was special about the development process was that the participating municipalities actively and voluntarily contributed, motivated by positive experiences of the municipalities with the PLENUM program of the state and the federal government's support program for regions . The participatory principle came into play particularly with the regulation and the delimitation. Another special feature of the joint planning process was that all participants strived from the start to develop a biosphere area for Germany on the basis of the UNESCO criteria. On October 15, 2007, the participatory UNESCO application was submitted to the MAB Committee (UNESCO Program Man and the Biosphere ). Since May 26, 2009, the Swabian Alb biosphere area has also been recognized as a UNESCO biosphere reserve. The certificate of recognition was handed over to the then Prime Minister Günther Oettinger by the chairwoman of the German MAB National Committee Gertrud Sahler on June 26, 2009 in the old camp in Münsingen. In July 2012, the framework concept required by UNESCO was presented to the public. It contains goals, measures and projects for the development of the area over the next 10 years. It was created together with around 200 actors from the biosphere area.

Rare animals and plants

Neidlinger Tal in the biosphere area with meadows and orchards.

The cultural landscape of the biosphere area, which is worth protecting, offers important habitat for numerous rare animal and plant species. Examples are red kite , peregrine falcon , honey buzzard , rough-owl , woodlark , wheatear , mountain warbler , Bechstein's bat , alpine buck , black apollo , swallowtail or the blue-black kingfisher . Typical plant representatives are numerous rare orchids or the silver thistle .

Special features

The hillside and ravine forests on the Albtrauf are a distinctive natural and unique feature of the biosphere reserve. The landscape- defining orchards in the central foothills of the Alb and the varied traditional cultural landscape on the Alb with its juniper heaths , grasslands , meadows, pastures, arable land and forests characterize the biosphere area.

As a further specialty, zones with intensive industrial use have also been added to the protected area. This includes parts of the districts of cities such as Metzingen and the city of Reutlingen , where conflicts with the objectives of "sustainable development and the harmonious coexistence of man and nature" and "a model region in successful nature and environmental protection with the social and economic development of the im Area living people should be linked “need special solutions. According to UNESCO, the biosphere area should develop exemplary solutions here. One example project is the so-called partner initiative, in which over 100 companies and service providers have already been certified as partners in the biosphere area. To do this, they have to meet extensive quality criteria in the areas of nature and environmental protection, regionality and service.

Information facilities

Information center building, Münsingen-Auingen
Interior

The Swabian Alb Biosphere Center with approx. 450 square meters of interactive exhibition space was opened in the old warehouse in Münsingen-Auingen on October 23, 2010. In addition to the main information center, there is a decentralized network of information and educational institutions for the biosphere area. This network informs visitors and guests on various topics of the biosphere area. The following facilities are part of the network:

  1. Münsinger Bahnhof - center for nature, the environment and tourism
  2. Beuren open-air museum
  3. Main and state stud Marbach
  4. Nature Conservation Center Schopflocher Alb
  5. Fruit growing museum Metzingen- Glems
  6. Peterstor Zwiefalten
  7. Wimsener Höhle Hayingen
  8. Offenhausen Stud Museum
  9. Metzingen Wine Museum
  10. Listhof Reutlingen - Betzingen environmental education center
  11. Waldschulheim Hayingen -Indelhausen
  12. Schertelshöhle Westerheim
  13. Mill and costume museum Pfullingen
  14. Information center Ehinger Alb in Dächingen
  15. Information center Schelklingen -Hütten (Schmiechtal)
  16. Lauterach Information Center (Sportheim)
  17. World of Discovery Bad Urach Bad Urach

Another information center is planned at Heidengraben between Erkenbrechtsweiler, Grabenstetten and Hülben.

Hiking trails and long-distance cycle routes through the biosphere area

The Biosphere Reserve is hiking through predicate trails , but also by long-distance trails in the sense of sustainable tourism developed.

Long-distance hiking trails

Hiking trails

Long-distance cycle routes

From Ulm and from Lake Constance , two long-distance cycle routes of major tourist importance lead to the biosphere area:

In Donnstetten they unite and leave the biosphere region jointly by the Neidlinger valley north.

The Danube Cycle Path with its variant through the valley of the Urdonau touches the southeastern part of the biosphere area near Schelklingen .

Office

The office of the biosphere area is located in the Swabian Alb Biosphere Center in the old camp in Münsingen-Auingen. 13 employees coordinate the development of the large reserve. The Federal Forests division cooperates with the Federal Agency for Real Estate Tasks as the owner of the former Münsingen military training area.

literature

  • Markus Rösler: Swabian Alb Biosphere. Good things take time . In: National Park . No. 141 , 2008, p. 15-19 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Reutlinger General-Anzeiger May 27, 2009 for UNESCO recognition
  2. ↑ Albsteig - Top Trails of Germany, Germany's best hiking trails, accessed on April 3, 2017
  3. ^ Wanderbaren Germany - Portal for hiking in Germany

Coordinates: 48 ° 26 ′ 57.7 "  N , 9 ° 30 ′ 13.7"  E