Landscape protection area Westfalenhang

Landscape protection area Westfalenhang in front of the village

Employees of the Biological Station Hochsauerlandkreis fight ragwort by pulling up in the LSG

The Westfalenhang landscape protection area with 25.21 hectares is located west of Altastenberg in the city of Winterberg . The area was in 2008 by the council of Hochsauerlandkreises with the landscape plan Winterberg as a conservation area designated (LSG) Type C. The entire LSG has been part of the FFH area Bergwiesen bei Winterberg (DE 4717-305) since 2004 . The other parts of the FFH area Bergwiesen bei Winterberg bei Altastenberg are in the nature reserve Bergwiesen bei Altastenberg and in the nature reserve Brandtenberg . Further sub-areas of the FFH area are located in other areas of Winterberg. The area actually intended for designation as a nature reserve became the LSG because of its partial use as the Westfalenhang ski area . In the LSG there are extensively used mountain meadows with mane use. In the LSG there are large, species-rich areas of poor grassland with red fescue and ostrich grass, smooth oat and gold oat meadows, and wood cranesbill gold oat meadows. The LSG is a legally protected biotope according to § 30 BNatSchG.

Protection purpose

The Westfalenhang landscape protection area was designated as one of 13 type C landscape protection areas, meadow valleys and significant extensive grassland in the urban area of Winterberg. As in the other 12 landscape protection areas of type C in the Winterberg landscape planning area, there is a ban on converting grassland and fallow land into arable land or other forms of use in the LSG valley system of the Elpe . First afforestation and the creation of Christmas tree crops is prohibited. A maximum of two years of arable use within twelve years is permitted, provided that this prepares the renewal of the sward. This is considered an extended nursing shift . In the case of extended care changes , a minimum distance of five meters from the central water bed must be maintained.

The designation was made to supplement the nature reserve designation in the Winterberg floodplains to create a network of open-land biotopes so that animals and plants retain the opportunity to migrate and spread, and to preserve the occurrence of protected bird species and protect species-rich plant communities.