Inventory of the 'Grünes Band' (the green belt along the former internal German border)

Support priority:

Protecting valuable habitats: Procedures and methods for habitat restoration

Location:

Former internal German border (Bavaria, Brandenburg, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Lower Saxony, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringia)

Period:

04/2001 - 06/2002 (Preliminary study)

Short description:

By virtue of its respite from use and its inaccessibility over a number of decades, the area of the former internal German border has successfully developed into a contiguous belt including some valuable habitats, which today is known as the 'Grünes Band' (green belt). It stretches from the Baltic coast of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to the three-way intersection of Saxony - Bavaria - Czech Republic. It passes through a total of 9 of Germany's states (Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Lower Saxony, Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Hesse, Bavaria, Thuringia and Saxony). It takes in the true 'no-man's land', a 50-200 m wide strip between the patrol route and the former state border, along with neighbouring land in many places. Given its 1393 km length, it represents a habitat network of nationwide importance.

Over large stretches - especially in the intensively used landscapes of the fertile plain - these are the only surviving areas of near-natural land, which can serve as dispersal routes and resource areas for many species. Hence they are reference points for upgrading the neighbouring cultural landscape.

While some sections of the 'Grünes Band' are already designated conservation areas and more protected areas are planned, other parts again are being used, sometimes illegally, or bisected by transport routes.

The objective of the testing and development project was to investigate the technical principles and action needed to safeguard the long-term function of the 'Grünes Band' as a large-scale habitat network.

To this end, its present condition has been mapped. Important tasks involved are surveys of habitat assemblages and of the successional stages following land-use abandonment. In parallel to this, the current or planned protection status of every sub-section of the 'Grünes Band' has been recorded. On this basis, gaps and core areas of special importance for the network have been identified in a whole-landscape context.

Further stages of work formulated development goals for the individual sections and devising proposals for their implementation. In doing so, all kinds of conservation concepts have been taken into account. Alongside conventional protection and management measures, the project also explored the possibilities offered by the different cultural landscape programmes of the regional states concerned.
Evaluations of past experiences of large-scale management measures in the 'Grünes Band' are now contributed as a foundation for planning. These findings can also be used for planning in other regions.

Where core areas have yet to be selected, their ownership status has been ascertained.

The project has being flanked with intensive public relations work.