Forest protection (nature protection)

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Forest protection in the sense of nature conservation is understood as protecting the forest ecosystem from harmful effects. Unlike the more common forestry forest protection concept is here less protection against biotic or abiotic forest damage in the foreground, but the protection against use influences or forest conversion to other uses.

International dimension

Forest protection has been a buzzword in the political debate since the 1992 Rio Environment Summit ( United Nations Conference on Environment and Development ). The core is usually the demand for a worldwide sustainable forest policy. Important issues in this context are the protection of tropical and boreal rainforests and the protection of biodiversity . In addition, the certification of forest products, for example by the Forest Stewardship Council or the Program for Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes , has recently become more important.

In this respect, forest protection in the sense used here is mostly used in a global context. This often involves the substantial threat to primary forests from unplanned use (e.g. through illegal logging ) or destruction through forest conversion and conversion to other types of use ( e.g. through soy or palm oil plantations or cattle pastures ). The global conservation of forest areas - in particular large-scale primary or little influenced forests of the boreal and tropical climate - is due to its carbon sink function and its importance for the global climate in the center of climate policy interest. In 2007 the UN climate conference in Bali approved the REDD forest protection program . With this instrument, the protection of the forest is to be financially rewarded in order to slow down deforestation and ultimately climate change .

Situation in Germany

When referring to forests with a long tradition of use, as in most areas of Europe, “forest protection” usually refers to the forestry term. In the context of protection against clearing or forest desolation, forest conservation is usually used . This term is also used in relevant laws such as the Federal Forest Act .

When it comes to specific conservation goals as the preservation and promotion of biodiversity, it is called forest conservation . The instruments of forest nature protection can be divided into integrative and segregative approaches. The former strive for protective and useful functions on the same area, the latter a strict two-dimensional separation of the functions.

Integrative approaches consist in approximating the natural composition of tree species and the natural stand structure, leaving dead wood or reaching deadwood threshold values, designating habitat trees or islands of old wood or adapting forestry measures (e.g. choice of working method, timing, Compliance with nest protection zones, etc.).

Segregative approaches intend total protection on certain areas, while other areas are dominated by use. In segregative forest nature conservation, a network of larger, unused forest areas (in accordance with the concept of “minimum structure areas”) is usually sought, which are connected by smaller unused areas according to the stepping stone concept .

While large parts of the world - such as North America, South Africa or Australia - are dominated by segregative strategies, integrative forest conservation has developed in Germany as part of multifunctional forestry. The nature conservation standards have risen continuously since the second half of the 20th century and have been increasingly supplemented by segregative forest nature conservation since the 1990s.

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