Düsseldorf (dpa / lnw) - The extent of nature conservation areas has reached a new high in North Rhine-Westphalia. According to calculations by the State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection (Lanuv), the nature conservation areas will have expanded by around 297,000 hectares in 2021. That corresponds to 8.7 percent of the country's area, the Ministry of the Environment announced on Monday. Compared to 2020, the data shows an increase of 10,300 hectares over the year. The state share increased by 0.3 percentage points.
In the long term, the proportion of nature conservation areas in the country has more than doubled since 1995. These include nature reserves, the Eifel National Park, national natural monuments and wilderness development areas. In the nature reserves and in the national park, the protection of nature and landscape has priority over human use. According to Lanuv, the paths must not be left in these areas. Forestry or agricultural use is only possible under certain conditions.
"Without intact nature, without a wild and lively North Rhine-Westphalia, our livelihoods are at risk," said Environment Minister Oliver Krischer (Greens). Greater efforts are therefore required to preserve biological diversity. Intact habitats are the basis for this and the Eifel National Park shows what success ambitious nature and species protection can achieve. Around 45 percent of the animal, fungus and plant species examined are on the "Red List" in NRW - i.e. they are endangered, threatened with extinction or already extinct.
