Demonstration: gossip around the Badener Wand goes into the next round

In the balance between species protection and climbing, the Karlsruhe regional council spoke out in favor of the breeding peregrine falcons and completely closed the Badener Wand for five years. The Climbing and Nature Conservation Working Group in Battert does not want to simply accept this decision and is calling for a demonstration.

The Karlsruhe regional council values ​​the protection of breeding peregrine falcons more highly than the interests of recreational climbers and blocks them Baden wall am batters complete for the next five years. Your authority did not take the decision lightly, says District President Silvia Felder, but the rock must be blocked.

Peregrine Falcons in the Baden Wall
With the complete closure of the Badener Wand, the Karlsruhe Regional Council wants to better protect the peregrine falcons. Image: J. Bergman

Compromise proposals not considered enough?

The other side criticizes that too little attention was paid to the climbers' arguments in the decision-making process. They doubted that the peregrine falcons' lack of breeding success could be attributed solely to the climbers. Various measures were proposed to protect the animals, including a six-month closure analogous to the practice in numerous other climbing areas in Germany (Lacrux reported).

The Regional Council of Karlsruhe emphasizes that the Alpine Club's compromise proposals have been examined intensively and assessed as insufficient. The authority bases its decision on its own experts and on a report from the Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Biology in Radolfzell. The argumentation of the Regional Council of Karlsruhe can be found in the press release under the point Grounds.

Call for demonstration on November 27th

The Climbing and Nature Conservation Working Group (AKN) Battert, which opposed the Vollsperrung of the Badener Wand and campaigned for a proportionate and up-to-date nature conservation, does not want to simply accept the decision of the regional council of Karlsruhe.

That is why he is calling for demonstrations against the decision on November 27, from 11 a.m. at Leopoldsplatz in Baden-Baden. "We haven't given up hope yet. Now it's on to the next round, »says Uta Kollmann from the AKN.

"We haven't given up hope yet. Now it's on to the next round."

Uta Kollmann, Working Group Climbing and Nature Conservation Battert

Badener Wand: Changes of the Karlsruhe Regional Council in the protection concept

  • The Badener Wand, one of 20 climbing rocks in the Battertfelsen nature reserve, will be completely calmed down as a priority area for nature conservation from January 1, 2023 and will be closed to climbing all year round - initially for the next five years. So far, it has been possible to climb the wall every six months. The removal of the climbing equipment in the wall will be essential. This is intended to prevent illegal climbing, which has always been a problem in individual cases, in the future.
  • Closure of the Blockhaldenweg below the Badener Wand as part of the new path conception of the forest administration.
  • Complete removal of the rock bridge. Even massive barriers have so far not been able to prevent the use of the rock during the breeding season.
  • It is also planned to work with the paragliders to find a solution for a sufficient minimum distance when flying over the Baden Wall. So far there is no agreement on this.
  • Visitors should also be made aware of the protected area through improved visitor information and visitor guidance through portal boards and signposts.

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Credits: Cover picture Climbing and Nature Conservation Working Group Battert

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