Leipzig (dpa/sn) - NABU Saxony has clearly rejected calls for the abolition of the Saxon Switzerland National Park in the wake of the devastating forest fires. According to a statement from the association on Wednesday in Dresden, that would be "an ecological disaster" against which one would defend oneself with legal means if necessary. He points out that according to the categories of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), nature is left to its own devices to protect the ecosystem on a minimum area. "Management and tourism have to be geared to that."
According to NABU, retreats for plants and animals are becoming increasingly rare, which is why untouched places like the area in Saxon Switzerland have "extremely high added value". With 0.5 percent of the state area, the only national park in the Free State forms one of the largest contiguous areas in which nature is largely left to itself, regenerates on its own and adapts to changing climatic conditions.
The discussion about deadwood is also going in the wrong direction. "Deadwood serves a large number of animals, fungi and plants as a nesting, development, feeding or wintering habitat," argued the association. "It is not the trees in the forest area that have fallen victim to drought and pests that are the cause of the forest fires." Rather, human irrationality often leads to such catastrophes - this must be prevented in the future through comprehensive education and precautionary measures.
