Heidenau (dpa/sn) – The guardians of historical garden monuments in Germany fear for their existence in view of the impairment caused by infrastructure, changed energy policies and climate change. The climatic changes, the development of forests and fields in the course of the expansion of the cities, but also accelerated approval procedures for regenerative energy production are dangers, said Claudius Wecke from the state palaces, castles and gardens of Saxony on Thursday at the sidelines of a conference on environmental protection for garden monuments in Baroque garden Großsedlitz (Saxon Switzerland). Until Friday, 120 international experts and practitioners will exchange views on this development and discuss possible solutions.
“These are valuable cultural landscapes that have been cultivated for centuries and are a protected asset in their own right,” said Wecke. Those responsible and society must become aware of their value before decisions are made that have a negative impact on these areas. The conference also draws attention to the value of historical gardens for nature and species conservation as well as biological diversity, also in the surrounding landscapes.
These historical connections and their visual relationships are also threatened in their continued existence, he said. “The protection of the surrounding area is of existential importance for the preservation of historical gardens in today’s times, which are characterized by increasing surface sealing and the energy transition.”
