“the situation in The forest is as bad as never before,” says Christian Hönig. He is the tree protection officer with the FEDERAL government in Berlin warns in the light of dry soils and recurring heat stages: “It is the forest to die 2.0 is imminent. In Germany, 80 percent of trees have damage.”
is How precarious the situation, also shows the state of the forest report by the Federal Ministry of food and agriculture (BMEL) published annually since 1984. Accordingly, between 2016 and 2018, are dried up in Germany, about 500 millions of young trees. In the year 2019, the mortality rate was, according to the MINISTRY of food and agriculture “above average”. The condition of older trees is deteriorating also from year to year.
The consequence is that deciduous trees lose their leaves, even tree crowns of coniferous trees are always lights. Particularly affected by deforestation in forests in Germany, the Federal States of lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony and North-Rhine were in the past years, Westphalia. BMEL, The graph shows that The Crown thinning of the tree species has increased in comparison to the previous year.
Because the forests are in this country parched extremely dry and the soil that threatened the healthy tree, there is a further danger: forest fires stock. Even a small spark suffices to ignite a fire. Even if it is not banned like in the past few weeks on and off again rain, this is a risk as a result. “The waters get often, not even to the floor. The located herb and shrub layer will remain dry,” says Hönig. In order to avert the danger of forest fires, it need several times a year, a intense rain for several days.
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drought maps the extent of the drought,
show the full extent of the drought in German forests is a look at the drought monitor at the Helmholtz centre for environmental research shows. This specifies where in Germany, a strong drought, especially in the deeper soil layers of up to 1.80 meters. Because even if it is occasionally moistened rains and the soil, the deep soil layers remain dry. UFZ-drought-monitor/ Helmholtz-centre for environmental research In the East and the West of Germany reigns exceptional drought.
at the moment, particularly in the East of Germany is affected by “exceptional drought”. The plants and trees of the available water, the so-called “available water capacity”, is the research center that, in many places, dangerously low.
UFZ-drought-monitor/ Helmholtz-centre for environmental research. In many areas of Germany, too little water is the plant available.
From a value of less than 50 percent of the plants are in drought stress, is the value at Zero, begin to wither and the plants. In East Germany, these values are in many Parts already at Zero, also in West Germany, this concern reaches the value in many places. The result is that plants are no longer able to extract water from the soil and begin to die.
“We will experience forest die 2.0”
Already in the 80s, a vast forest made die in Germany for the massive tree loss. At the time, brought the large-scale destruction of entire tree populations with air pollution and sulphur dioxide emissions in conjunction. “This is a Problem that we have today, more or less under control,” says Hönig.
But the death of the forests continues because of the climate change stocks in the tree in the truest sense of the word, does not dry out. In July 2019, the Federation of German forest people called the “climate emergency” for the forest”. Also Hönig warns: “What we are witnessing is the dying Forest 2.0.” “Prospects” in FOCUS Online
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in Order to prevent what has already begun, the FEDERAL the ten demands addressed to “the Decision makers in policy, forestry and hunting”. One of the main actions relates to the conversion of spruce and pine forests into mixed deciduous forests. “We need to get away from the mono-cultures,“ emphasizes Hönig. So the forest can better come to terms with the consequences of climate change, rightly, be resilientere and more diverse forest stands is necessary.
“is An example of the spruce”, he explains. “The tree is widely planted, even though it is actually up in the mountains at home. They like it cool and fresh – and yet it has settled everywhere. Now all the forest threaten stocks of collapse. We may not commit these errors in the case of other tree species such as Douglas fir again.”
mono-cultures of climate change are not grown
The FEDERAL government also requested that at least ten percent of the forests permanently as natural forests, that is, free from silvicultural interventions, may develop. This rare animals, plants, and fungi would be protected better. Researchers could gain valuable insights into the ways in which the forest itself against the climate change fight.
“It’s not too late,” says Christian Hönig. We already have to deal with our stressed-out forests. Forests would have to be environmentally-friendly managed, allowing more moisture to stay in the forest, the forest expert. Thus, the forest could re-stabilise itself.
this means that less drastic procedures for timber harvesting, a stop to the drainage of forests and the avoidance of compaction of forest soils by inspection. And ” We need to steer processes that exist in nature anyway.” is the Only way we can create Hönig, according to stable forests, which are in the future, immune to storms, drought and heat.
This can each of the Individual against the forest to die, do
in Addition to the economy and politics, we are normal citizens able to protect the forest consciously and against his death fight.
forest fire danger minimize
When the temperatures climb back to the top and it rarely rains, also increases the risk of forest fires. To prevent fires, each Individual can do something. To do this, the FEDERAL government released some advice:
- Park in the vicinity of forests only on designated Parking spaces
- do not smoke in the forest or near the forest
- Away from the designated barbecue places should not be grilled at a high risk of fire to have a barbecue in the countryside is often entirely prohibited
- Dispose of the ashes in the barbecue areas provided for the ash container. If this is not possible, delete the coals with plenty of water and dispose of the cold ashes in the trash
- make Sure you choose the charcoal on a regional origin of the wood, especially tropical wood in the charcoal should Conserve his
- international forests, in addition to the choice of your grill good: more vegetables and less meat. If meat from local pasture-, Bio -, or Neuland attitude. “Everything that helps against climate change, it also helps the forest,” stresses Hönig
Sustainable wood and buy furniture
Regardless of the summer and the risk of forest fires the FEDERAL government of Bavaria advises, moreover, to note follow – up points when furniture or wood purchase:
- pay Attention to quality labels and certificates, about the nature of the country – or the FSC seal of approval
- Use as a domestic substitute for tropical wood in the outdoor area of the wood of oak, black locust and larch
- Whether Board or kitchen cabinetry: and Oils eliminates the need for a new one
The forest is a protector of the climate
is to protect abrade Why we are the forest? He is not only a victim of climate change – but also one of the most effective environmentalists in the world. According to the German Federal Ministry for the environment, nature conservation and nuclear safety of the forest and forestry play a fundamental role in climate protection: in Germany Alone, it relieves the atmosphere annually by more than 120 million tonnes of CO2.
14 percent of the German CO2-emissions can compensate for the forest and the Raw and building material wood. This corresponds approximately to the German traffic-caused Emissions.
Even if the measures do not show immediately in the income, is therefore a protection of the forest, says Christian Hönig. “To move something in the woods, it takes time. The trees are just slowly – and that is the beauty of them.”
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