Le Réseau Alpin des Espaces Protégés
To enable transnational exchange and learning on spatial planning and territorial development in the Alpine Space, the Academy for Territorial Development in the Leibniz Association (ARL), the Interreg Alpine Space project OpenSpaceAlps and the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy; Department of Regional Planning (StMWi) are jointly hosting an international conference, entitled: “Towards sustainable spatial development – transnational lessons on the safeguarding of open spaces and the reduction of land take”.
The event will be held on 19 and 20 October 2021 at AlpenCongress in Berchtesgaden (Germany).
The goals of the conference are:
The conference is planned as a presence event in Berchtesgaden in compliance with the required health, hygiene and distance measures. Given the ever dynamic development of the Corona pandemic, we reserve the right to adapt the event format if necessary.
The registration is open until the 30 September 2021. All information incl. the agenda and the registration form is available from the ARL event website.
For any questions about the AlpPlan network and its activities:
After four years of candidacy, the Jorat Nature Park, which is entirely located on the city of Lausanne’s territory, has been certified by the Swiss Confederation in 2021, thus becoming the second peri-urban nature park on a national scale. With its more than 40 km2, the Jorat forest, mostly composed of beech forest, is the largest forest on the Swiss Plateau. Its core zone, which will be a natural forest reserve, is a territory of 4.4 km2 allowing the preservation of the existing natural heritage while creating favorable conditions for the evolution of biodiversity. On the decline in lowland forests, this biodiversity includes species dependent on old or dead wood. These species represent about 25% of the forest fauna and flora, essential to the natural cycle of the forest.
Photo: © Parc naturel du Jorat
Bringing voices of young professionals in the front of the conversation stage has long been part of ALPARC approach. The IUCN session is living proof of this commitment. In the same vein, we are very pleased to share the recent implementation of a new digital entry point that has been developed by EUSALP Action Group 7 and youth.shaping.EUSALP. Aimed for young professionals, this digital tool serves as an open platform where they can submit project ideas, proposals and suggestions for the sustainable development of the Alps. The password for the digital entry point is: Eusalp2021
ACCESS THE ENTRY POINT: https://eusalp-youth.eu/home-digital-entry-point/
On September 7th, ALPARC and EUSALP Action Group 7 (AG7) will hold a common session at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.
The IUCN World Conservation Congress has grown to be the world’s largest and most democratic recurring conservation event in the world, bringing the expertise and influence of its powerful membership to bear on the most pressing issues of the time. The 2021 edition is scheduled in Marseilles, from September 3rd to September 11th. The Congress’ Forum is the largest knowledge marketplace for conservation and sustainable development science, practice and innovation. It is open to the public and a great place to learn, share, network and influence.
In this context, ALPARC and AG7 will be presenting an onsite & livestreamed session, titled: “Connecting protected areas and beyond to safeguard mountainous ecosystem services and adapt to climate change - An intergenerational dialogue”.
This session will bring forward a constructive dialogue between young professionals and senior conservation experts, sharing viewpoints on how nature conservation issues should be best addressed regarding the current challenges like climate change and biodiversity loss.
MORE INFORMATION: HERE
A series of webinars organized by the Ossola Protected Areas Managing Authority has brought participants to learn more about the many facets of health and wellness tourism.
The Alps are an area naturally suited to health and wellbeing, thanks to natural resources that can be exploited for tourism purposes with a specific focus on health. To explore these issues, within the framework of the Interreg Alpine Space project HEALPS2, the Ossola Protected Areas Management Authority have organised 5 webinars, each of which addressed a different aspect tourism in the mountains can leverage in order to evolve and build new health and well-being value chains.
The topics addressed were regenerative tourism, the role local, sustainably produced game meat can have both on health and tourism, the potential of mountain therapy and of accessible tourism for tourist operators and on the relationship between mountain sports and respect for the environment.
The webinars took place every Monday from 10 May to 7 June and were conducted by Stefania Cerutti, Director of the UPONTOURISM Interdepartmental Centre of the University of Eastern Piedmont, accompanied by expert guests. Each webinar had 70 participants on average, 48 of which participated in all the webinars. 60 new contacts asked to be added to the Ossola Protected Areas mailing list, through which the news about the HEALPS2 project are also shared.
Ordinance enters into force on Wednesday, 30 June 2021 – limited to five years for the time being
The so-called Infinity pool above the Königssee in the course of the Königsbach has become a world-famous visitor magnet. This development has increasingly endangered the soil, flora and fauna in the Berchtesgaden National Park. Therefore, after a close examination, the decision has now been made to close the area around the Gumpen for five years. This is to give nature time to recover. The regulation has entered into force on Wednesday, June 30, 2021.
With its special view on parts of the Königssee, the Gumpen in the Königsbach waterfall forms an attractive excursion destination in the Berchtesgaden National Park. While the Gumpen used to be an insider tip, in recent years they have become a tourist attraction, especially among the younger generation. In particular, the so-called infinity pool in the upper part of the waterfall cascade achieved great popularity far beyond the region via numerous posts in the social networks in a short time. The media attention inevitably led to a massive increase in visitor numbers.
Only two small paths formed the traditional access to the area around the Gumpen, which was previously only used to a small extent by locals. Due to the rapid spread in social media and on outdoor platforms, these paths are now known to a worldwide public, the number of visitors has multiplied significantly. A survey from the summer of 2020 showed an average number of about 150 visitors per day on weekends, but far more than 350 on peak days.
As a result, in recent summers, a wide-ranging network of trails with a length of at least three kilometers has newly formed. As a result, the entire area is massively disturbed – the individual paths that converge again and again are sometimes over several meters wide. Especially in the immediate area of the Gumpen, the topsoil is massively damaged due to the high visitor frequency. Due to the destruction of the vegetation, the topsoil lies free in the steep slopes and is further eroded by the mechanical load and the onset of water erosion. In many places, the fine roots of the surrounding trees are exposed over a large area.
Numerous animal species, including strictly protected bird species, are also significantly disturbed by the massive flow of visitors.
The ordinance, which the Berchtesgadener Land District Office has issued is intended to contribute to the recovery of vegetation over the next five years as a building block in the context of visitor guidance, as well as to support the closure of the soil wounds by natural succession.
The purpose of the Berchtesgaden National Park is to protect nature. The development of the area for the population for educational and recreational purposes is always subject to the protection of nature. The prohibition to enter the areas specified in the map (annex) is, in view of the circumstances, a necessary measure to prevent further impairments. The area mainly includes those areas that are damaged by the newly created trampling paths. In total, it is about 10 ha of the area of the Berchtesgaden National Park, which covers a total area of more than 20,000 ha.
A seasonal interruption of the ban, for example for the winter months, would counteract the successes of the summer closure. Due to the often humid weather during this time, even a few visitors would be sufficient to destroy the delicately developed ground vegetation over the summer and cause corresponding (step) damage.
The ordinance of the District Office is initially planned for a period of five years. This period may be sufficient for the vegetation to recover and for the soil wounds to close. The time is used by the National Park Administration to evaluate the development. If it turns out that five years is not enough or that visitor pressure is back to the level it has been in the recent past, a further closure after the next five years cannot be ruled out.
Appeals to the reasonableness of the visitors and for a voluntary renunciation to enter this area have unfortunately had no effect in the past. With the ban that came into force, It is now possible to punish violations as an administrative offense. The rangers of the Berchtesgaden National Park carry out the on-site inspections and report violations to the Berchtesgadener Land District Office. There, the further processing of the fine procedure takes place.
For the Berchtesgadener Land District Office and the Berchtesgaden National Park, the closure is the last resort. Both authorities hope that this now unavoidable measure will enable nature to recover from the heavy burden of recent years. In addition, visitors and nature users, especially from the field of new media, should also be sensitized to the needs of the plant and animal world in the national park and an awareness of their protection should be awakened. This hope is also reflected in the limitation of the regulation for the next five years.
Full press release & contacts (in German): HERE
Photo: National Park employees put up the signs to close the vegetation protection area in the area (Credit: Nationalpark Berchtesgaden)
The Mercantour National Park has been severely affected by storm Alex. More than 60 km of the Park's trails are impassable and now require major repair work.
These trails are the link between the Mercantour and all those who live and work there. They are also synonymous with safety, the preservation of nature and the dynamism of tourism and the economy in the valleys. Responsible for the management of these trails, the National Park has set itself the goal of carrying out the identified work, estimated at 3.5 million euros, over three years. The works will contribute to several objectives: to allow the Park's teams to carry out their protection mission, to allow the inhabitants to reconnect with their territory and to allow nature lovers to rediscover their link with this extraordinary space.
Faced with the scale of the restoration costs, the park is appealing to all goodwill and to all those who are attached to the Mercantour and whose mobilisation can make a difference. This is why the park is launching its first fundraising campaign on the KissKissBankBank platform. The success of this campaign depends on the mobilization of everyone. The following link can be used to contribute directly or share the campaign: https://bit.ly/3hdoHIa
Picture: © Mercantour National Park
The crisis of the regional park of Valsesia in Piemonte led Federparchi's President Giampiero Sammuri and its vice president Agostino Agostinelli take a clear position regarding the present situation of regional parks in Italy:
"The crisis of the regional park of Valsesia, is an indicator of the serious state of malaise of many regional parks throughout Italy, many of which, despite their enormous wealth of biodiversity and naturalistic treasures, have severe financial and organizational difficulties. We believe that, in the face of legitimate criticisms advanced by the Community of the park in a letter sent to the Region, an intervention is needed. This intervention shall start from a careful analysis of the causes for the "serious inactivity", to the identification of possible solutions while implying the financial endowments by the Region that allow an effective and efficient management of the Entity.
The decision to "close the park" would be a misleading solution, worse than the non-activity that is reported and could have serious repercussions on nature protection.
The presidents are sure that the dialogue with all concerned stakeholders, the institutional ones but also association and territorial agents, allows for a new phase which will relaunch the Valsesia - Alta Valle Park Strona. This precious common good needs to be safeguarded for the conservation of its wonders of nature."
See original article (in Italian): https://bit.ly/3jsLPE3
In the past week we have been pleased to hold two new workshops for our members. These online meetings addressed the Working Groups within the network, in regards to two of our tfields of work: “Regional Development and quality of life” and “Education for sustainable development in the Alps”.
On June 18th, the first workshop was focusing on visitor management, challenges and opportunities for Alpine protected areas in view of future common activities at the Alpine level. Thus, the objective was to identify existing best practices for visitor management in different parks and common difficulties against the background of the increased post-Covid pressure on sensitive ecosystems. In this context, we also had the opportunity to discuss a concrete project proposal targeting joint actions at the international level.
On June 24th, the second workshop was aiming to foster exchange on the different education activities for this year’s summer and autumn season, and have a look at any new projects or initiatives which you would like to share with the other educators. It has been very inspiring to see how everyone is being highly creative to deal with the pandemic situation and to keep offering a large variety of Education Activities. The workshop also gave us the occasion to share updates on the upcoming 7th edition of Youth at the Top.
We would like to sincerely thank all the participants to these workshops. The valuable inputs from Protected Areas all across the Alps and the rich discussions that ensued, were living proof of the importance of international cooperation as we cherish it.
With more than 40 local events scheduled, the 7th edition of this international event is already a success! On July 8th-9th and across 9 different countries of the Alps and the Carpathians, several groups of kids and teens will go for a mountain hike and an overnight stay that they won't forget. This event is the opportunity to raise awareness on Alpine natural and cultural heritage among the youngest. Moreover, it favors values such as solidarity, respect and collective action which are crucial for a safe mountain experience. This year, several pedagogical activities will be implemented within the framework of the common theme "Local Food".
More info: https://youth-at-the-top.org/en/
Photo: © Parco Naturale Mont Avic - Roberto Facchini
Sondrio Festival is a unique international film festival, mainly dedicated to nature films, of high scientific and cinematographic level, made in protected areas worldwide. It takes place every year since 1987 in Sondrio, Italy, in November, during two weeks. Due to the Covid-Pandemic, the films of the 2020 were presented only in streaming. Therefore, the festival will be holding a Summer Special Edition from June 14th to June 20th to present these films again but to an audience in attendance this time. Seats can be reserved starting from Friday 4th June, up to 24 hours before the selected evening, and until the maximum capacity is reached. Among the 2020 films to be presented, "Natura senza confini" (Nature Without Borders) is a short documentary set in the Triglav National Park in Slovenia and the Julian Prealps National Park in Italy which are both ALPARC's members.
The works presented in the competition are selected from the best productions worldwide: among the past festivals winners are film-makers from all over the world and famous personalities in the field of nature documentary. Further film sections may be set up for documentaries made in natural areas, highlighting problems concerning the environment, its conservation, human activities, agriculture and sustainable development. The aims of the Festival are the diffusion of the culture of nature parks, protected areas and environmental protection, environmental education and the promotion of nature films.
PROGRAMME & RESERVATIONS: https://www.sondriofestival.it/it
