Tag Archives: tree

Germany

German forest decline hits record highs | News | DW | Instant News


Forests in Germany are “sick” and deteriorating at a record rate in 2020, the agriculture minister said, commenting on the annual forest report released on Wednesday.

Forests in Germany covers about one-third of the country’s total area, on 11.4 million hectares (44,000 square miles).

Main report findings:

  • More trees died in Germany in 2020 compared to previous years.
  • Only 21% of the trees observed had an intact crown – an indication of how healthy the tree is.
  • A record 1.7% of trees died between 2019 and 2020 – nearly 10 times the average.
  • Spruce was hardest hit: 4.3% of the trees were dead.
  • Deciduous trees are exposed to canopy thinning, which means they lose most of their normal leaf mass.

Various factors cause tree death

Report which examines the condition of 10,000 trees each year Since 1984, several factors have been identified that have contributed to the decline in German forests.

Bark beetle attack is the leading cause of cypress death in the country. This is made worse due to the dry summers which allow the beetles deep into the bark.

The report also blamed the storm, drought and forest fires in the last three years that caused massive damage to German forests.

  • Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Welcome to Spessart

    Spessart is a low-forested mountain range located in the German states of Bavaria and Hesse. Spanning over an area of ​​nearly 2,500 square km (940 square miles), it is home to many species of Specht, or woodpeckers, which are thought to derive its name. Weasels, wild boars, deer, racoons and martens are among other wildlife that live among and under trees.

  • Spessart Forest

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Lots of trees … (light among the trees)

    Protecting a forest the size of Spessart cannot be done by walking in the park. Apart from managing and maintaining existing trees, foresters are always thinking ahead for the next generation of forests. What they plant today will be what people go through in decades and perhaps centuries to come. If, that is, the wind and the weather do not make their ripe plans collapse.

  • A fallen tree

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    After the storm

    In January this year, a violent storm ripped through the forest, uprooting as many as 20,000 large trees. They are gradually being removed from the site, and work is underway to see if enough saplings have survived under the rubble to form the basis of an entirely new forest area. If there is not enough, the foresters have to plant again.

  • The man holding the birch branch at Spessart

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Sorting trees from wood

    A group of volunteers with the Bergwaldprojekt conservation group or the Forest Mountain Project have been coming to Spessart for a week to help assess the situation. They clean old branches and twigs, and use them to help support small trees that are buried or bent in the storm. In many places, there appeared to be enough small trees to avoid replanting.

  • Women are the caring branch

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Gender in the forest

    Although the number of women working in German forests is gradually increasing, this neighborhood is still predominantly male. The situation is more severe in former West German states, such as Bavaria, than in the East, where there is a longer history of women on the ground. Nonetheless, more than half of those who volunteer to take part in Bergwald’s 100 annual national projects are women.

  • Watering can in front of outdoor shower

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Forest freshness

    After a long day in the forest, the volunteers wanted to freshen up. There is no more luxury in the bath, but something that is altogether more exhilarating. A can of cold water in the open air. No fuss, no waste, but very clean attendees.

  • Bee on a blackberry flower

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    The life of a bee

    Spessart has more than just a blackberry bush section. For foresters, it can be tough work to prevent them from smothering the saplings at an early stage to ensure the next generation of forests sees the light of day. Since no pesticides are used in the forest, the only way to control their thorny branches is to cut them back.

  • Seedlings in the Spessart Forest

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    From oaks and beeches

    There are countless tree species growing in the folds of the Spessart, but two of them are very depicting. Beeches and oaks. To ensure saplings get the best start in life, other saplings, such as conifers or birches, or grasses that grow too close to them, are pulled or slashed down.

  • The carcasses of deer and wild boar were hung from hooks in the slaughterhouse

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Hunter’s joy

    Many of those who worked as foresters on Spessart, also hunted. This was thought to be a way to control deer and wild boar numbers, which in turn was a way to protect saplings from their hungry jaws and thus provide the opportunity for the next generation of forests to establish themselves.

  • Moss covered tree roots

    Deep in the Bavarian forest

    Nature playground

    With tons of trees to climb, hide behind, walk between and sit on, Spessart also provides all kinds of details for the imagination. From the moss-covered heights that have the faint appearance of a giant hedgehog, to the growth of giant mushrooms, to roots that can harbor several types of dark green reptiles sleeping among the leaves. Or maybe…

    Author: Tamsin Walker


What is being done to stop forest disease?

“We have launched the largest ecological forest reconstruction program ever,” said Julia Klöckner, agriculture minister, Wednesday.

For this reason, the government hopes to encourage forest biodiversity with various types of trees.

The government has also pledged around € 1.5 billion ($ 1.8 billion) in funding to support urban and private forest owners.

Nature group BUND feels the government is not moving fast enough.

“The German government must finally take effective climate protection measures and at the same time massively reduce polluting emissions from transportation, industry and agriculture,” the group said.

kmm / aw (Reuters, dpa, AFP)

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Brazil

Travelers coming to Spain from South Africa, Brazil must be quarantined | Instant News


Spain will keep travelers from South Africa and Brazil quarantined for at least seven days after their arrival, Health Minister Carolina Darias said on Wednesday, part of efforts to quell the more contagious variant of the coronavirus.

The travelers must stay home and receive no visitors for 10 days after arrival – unless they test negative during their quarantine, Darias explained, in which case they will regain mobility after seven days.

“This is an absolute and urgent measure to avoid the spread of these variants in our country,” Darias said, calling on regions not to relax their actions. “We need to learn from what happened in the previous wave … because once the numbers go up, it’s very difficult to bring them down again.”

After a post-Christmas spike in which daily infections exceeded 40,000, the third wave in Spain receded, with the two-week incidence dropping to 350 cases per 100,000 people on Wednesday from 900 in late January.

The infection tally increased by 10,829 to 3.1 million on Wednesday, while the death toll rose 337 to 66,316.

In the next phase of its national inoculation plan, Spain will provide the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine to people aged 45 to 55, the Health Ministry said.

The injections, currently approved for those between the ages of 18 and 55, are now given to people in that age group at high risk of contracting the virus, such as child care workers and physiotherapists, as well as police, firefighters and teachers.

Most of the residents and staff of nursing homes with the highest priority in Spain have received two shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, which is now being rolled out to over 80 years of age and medical personnel.

The shots will be provided alongside those over 70 and then over 60, the ministry said, while people under 60 at high risk of COVID-19 will be next.

Authorities have given 2.7 million doses and 1.1 million people have received the full course from an estimated 47 million population.

Some regions have relaxed restrictions on business opening hours and the hotel sector, although curfews remain in effect across Spain.

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This story has been published from wire agent bait without modification to the text. Only the title has been changed.

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Brazil

THE STROLLER: Try this for good luck in 2021 | Food | Instant News







TODAY’S WORD precocious. Example: By speaking his first word at 7 months of age and taking his first steps at 8 months of age, little Hunter must be a precocious child.

THURSDAY WORDS researched. This means checking or inspecting carefully. Example: Barney scrutinizes phone records but sees no calls that went off line.

New Year’s Traditions

More than that, this year should start with the traditional fortune foods of peas, collard greens and pork. To really encourage luck, put a penny under each plate and add extra pork.

In some traditions, fish is a common food for the start of the new year – because fish only swim forward, following the direction of the time.

Some people leave their windows open to bring out the old and let the new.

In upstate New York, peppermint pork is sold throughout the holiday season. After you buy a hog, everyone takes a turn to hit it with a hammer and eat a slice for good luck in the coming year.

In some countries, such as China and Latin America, people wear red underwear to raise excitement in the coming year.

In Denmark, people throw plates at the doorsteps of their friends and family on New Year’s Eve. A broken plate on your porch on New Year’s Day is getting better: Shards represent good luck.

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New Zealand

New Zealand Invites People To Turn 2020 Disappointment Into Trees in the ‘Forest of Hope’ | Instant News


New Zealand is gearing up for a greener 2021 coupled with a number of positives.

Meanwhile 2020 has been one of the toughest years for humanity with a world battling a pandemic that resulted in millions of deaths. It was a stay-at-home year with cancellations, delays, and missed events.

However, to instill gratitude and turn disappointment into hope, Tourism New Zealand has collaborated with ‘Trees that Count’, a conservation charity, inviting people to “share their disappointment and turn it into hope” by donating to trees in the Forest of Hope, whose journey they can follow.

Based on Travel Daily Media, The ‘Forest of Hope’ initiative started on December 1 and will continue until December 31.

Trees that Count acts as a community marketplace to connect funders and growers who aspire to plant 200 million native trees across the country.

Commenting on the collaboration with Tourism New Zealand, CEO Adele Fitzpatrick, Trees That Count said, “Our partnership with Tourism NZ will enable us to extend our optimism for the environment to audiences outside New Zealand, with the message that native trees are part of our culture, wellbeing. and future prosperity. Native trees are one of the most powerful tools we have to help combat climate change while protecting our unique biodiversity, and strengthen the existing international vision of Aotearoa as a country of stunning natural beauty, outdoor adventure and unique experiences related to nature. “

Also read: Bihar Movie Theater Offers Lifetime Free Tickets For Military Personnel, Winning Hearts

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Germany

German courts upheld a ban on felling trees at the Tesla factory site | Instant News


BERLIN (AP) – A German court ruled on Saturday that car maker Tesla should stop cutting trees at parts of the site outside Berlin where it is building the company’s first electric car plant in Europe.

The highest administrative court in the Berlin-Brandenburg region upheld a previous temporary ban on clearing forest sites after two environmental groups appealed the lower court’s decision to allow tree cutting. The regulation specifically stipulates that areas outside of plots where protected species live should not be cleared.

The court also said that Tesla did not provide the requested information about payment for a possible environmental restoration project until a deadline earlier this week, the German news agency dpa reported.

The company plans to open a factory next summer. It is not clear whether the decision will lead to a delay.

The case arises from a lawsuit filed by environmental groups NABU and Gruene Liga, which claim that wildlife in the forest had not been resettled safely before clearing began. They are very concerned about sand lizards and soft snakes, writes NABU on its website.

Both are protected species in Germany.

Tesla expects to make 150,000 electric cars a year at its new plants from mid-2021, with plans to increase that number to half a million each year.

The company, headquartered in California, announced late last year that it had decided to build its first European factory in the Berlin area. The planned site is in Gruenheide, east of the state capital of Brandenburg.

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