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Woodruff honored: Ostallgäu honors role models in forest management!
The VR Forest Prize was awarded in Ostallgäu on January 9, 2025 to honor sustainable forest owners and their important work.
Woodruff honored: Ostallgäu honors role models in forest management!
The VR Forest Prize, which is awarded every two years in Ostallgäu and Kaufbeuren, has once again honored outstanding forest owners. The Allgäuer Zeitung reported that the main prize this year went to Markus Endraß from Stötten, who manages around ten hectares of forest. Endraß has increased the diversity of tree species in his forest and informs visitors about topics such as forest conversion, wood use and hunting.
At the award ceremony, Forest Director Stephan Kleiner emphasized the important role of forest management for society. Forests not only provide wood, but also clean drinking water and fresh air, while also providing habitat for numerous animals and plants. They also protect against floods, mudslides, avalanches and rockfalls. The motto of the forest award “Preserve the forest – shape the forest” underlines the commitment of forest owners to sustainable and future-oriented forest management.
Finalists and jury
A total of five forest owners from Ostallgäu were in the final for the VR Forest Prize. In addition to Markus Endraß, these were Peter Erd from Nesselwang, Georg Köpf from Buching, Franziska Socher from Stötten and Franz Josef Graf from Waal. Peter Erd describes himself as a guardian of creation and is committed to cross-generational forest management. The jury, which is made up of representatives from various institutions, including the Bavarian Farmers' Association and the forestry administration, strives to recognize committed forest owners in the region. The main sponsor of the prize is VR Bank Augsburg-Ostallgäu.
The Office for Food, Agriculture and Forestry in Kaufbeuren, like the corresponding office in Bavaria reported, looks after numerous forests in the Ostallgäu district and the city of Kaufbeuren and covers an area of around 45,000 hectares, 31% of which is forested. Over 19,000 forest owners manage the forests, with 71% of the forest area being managed by private owners. The average size of private forest is less than 2 hectares, and in recent years there have been various initiatives to promote sustainable forest management and raise awareness about the use of natural resources.
– Submitted by West-East media