They take care of breeding eagles, wild camping hikers and environmental education for children: the Bavarian area supervisors. Although their years of work are bearing fruit, they are concerned.
Munich (dpa/lby) - In order to preserve the natural landscapes of Bavaria, full-time area managers have been caring for natural areas in the Free State for 20 years now. They're celebrating their anniversary this summer.
The work of the area supervisors is diverse. They monitor animal and plant species, guide visitors through moors, forests, sandy landscapes and mountains, advise farmers and ensure that tourism and nature conservation do not get in each other's way.
"We are not an authority, but see ourselves in the role of mediator," said spokeswoman Isolde Miller, area manager from Lindau on Lake Constance. The area managers mediate between nature and people as well as between various authorities and interest groups such as farmers, tourists, municipalities, residents and nature conservation associations.
The full-time area support started as a pilot project in 1997 with a first supervisor at Lake Ammer. In 2002 and 2003, the concept was expanded across Bavaria. Starting with 24 areas, there are now a total of 61 areas and almost 80 area supervisors.
The work of the supervisors is now bearing fruit, said Christian Niederbichler, who was Bavaria's first full-time area supervisor in 1997. So it was possible to resettle the curlew.
As a result, other problems have aggravated. Above all, a lot of day tourism since the corona pandemic and new development areas in the vicinity of the protected areas caused problems for animals and plants. "A big problem are hiking apps and hiking tips that send people somewhere that is beautiful without regard to nature conservation," said spokeswoman Miller.
Bavaria's area supervisors are largely financed by the Nature Conservation Fund Foundation, a non-profit foundation of the Free State based in Munich. Funding is supplemented by funds from regional foundations, associations and municipalities. The sponsorship varies from region to region.
The anniversary of the Bavarian area supervisors is currently being celebrated with events in the government districts. A final event is to take place on September 6th at Chiemsee.
