SGravel gardens will be banned in Hesse in the future. “Gravel is not a habitat, neither for plants nor for animals,” said Environment Minister Priska Hinz (Greens). The ban is part of the amendment to the Hessian nature conservation law, which the state parliament in Wiesbaden passed on Thursday with a black-green majority. The new regulation does not apply to existing gravel gardens. The amendment to the law is expected to come into force in the coming weeks.
With stricter requirements for outdoor lighting, the law is now intended to provide better protection for nocturnal insects. According to the Ministry of the Environment, Hesse is “the first federal state to legally anchor the protection of the night as a goal of its nature conservation”.
The law also creates improved conditions for habitats that are particularly affected by the consequences of the climate crisis, such as heat and droughts, and at the same time fulfill an important climate protection function as carbon stores: “Moorland is better protected, floodplains are rewetted and the creation of natural forests as a CO2 sink ten percent of the state forest area is anchored in law.”
Nature Conservation Union lacks measurable goals
The possibility of creating support areas for species protection is new and unique in Germany. Minister Hinz explained: “In this way we can also pool our strengths for endangered species outside of classic protected areas.” This should benefit species such as the European hamster, which lives on fields.
The FDP opposition had previously criticized that the law was directed against those farmers, foresters and landowners who were committed to protecting nature and species. The opposition Left Group emphasized that nature conservation cannot be a repair shop for failed transport, energy and industrial policies. The AfD opposition had described the law as superfluous.
According to the Nature Conservation Union (Nabu), on the other hand, many innovations will “promote the protection of flora and fauna”. However, the formulation of more measurable goals would be necessary, such as “the mandatory designation of wilderness areas on two percent of the country’s area and natural forests on five percent of the forest area”.
The Hessian Association of Forest Owners criticized that the amendment to the law neglected the interests of farmers and forest owners in rural areas. A series of measures for far-reaching restrictions on the use of forests and fields follow.
The Hesse climate list also judged: “Especially for the population in rural areas, the new law brings general restrictions for the sustainable management of forests, meadows and fields.”
Simplify mobile network expansion
On Thursday evening, the Hessian state parliament also decided to ease the expansion of mobile communications in some regions in the fight against poor cell phone reception. “We expect a noticeable boost for further expansion and at the same time relief for our administrations from the simplifications in the area of approval,” said Green MP Torsten Leveringhaus on Thursday evening in Wiesbaden with a view to the new law to accelerate the expansion of mobile communications. This was passed with a black-green majority.
The CDU parliamentarian Hartmut Honka emphasized that work should continue to be carried out together with the network operators to close the last dead spots in Hesse and to increase the network quality. With the new law, there should be simplifications – such as the “reduction of distances from antenna systems outdoors or the abolition of cultivation bans along district and state roads”.
Bijan Kaffenberger from the SPD opposition criticized: “The CDU and the Greens insist without reason on a mobile phone mast height of 15 meters without a permit, in contrast to the 20 meters we demand.” Higher masts can improve cell phone reception, but in the eyes of critics also more the landscape spoil.
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