Heft 42/2016 Guiding Concepts for Conservation of the Lower Austrian Green Belt Das Europäische Grüne Band erstreckt sich entlang des ehemaligen Eisernen Vorhangs durch ganz Europa und ver- bindet dabei ausgedehnte, naturnahe Biotopflächen und wertvolle Kulturlandschaften mit wachsenden Siedlungsräu- men und intensiv genutzten Agrarlandschaften. Diese Studie beschäftigt sich mit dem momentanen Status Quo der Initiative Grünes Band Österreich, sie gibt Einblick in den Wert der Landschaften dieser Region für den Naturschutz und bietet konkrete Vorschläge für die zukünftige Entwicklung der Initiative Grünes Band Österreich und der Nie- derösterreichischen Grenzgebiete. Eva Schweiger Guiding Concepts for Conservation of the Lower Austrian Green Belt Eva Schweiger, 2015 Abstract Stretching across Europe along the former Iron Curtain, the European Green Belt connects large undisturbed natural biotopes and valuable cultural landscapes with developing urban areas and intensively used agricultural landscapes. The European Green Belt initiative’s main goal is to preserve and restore a pan-European ecological network with a connecting function for species and habitats as well as for conservation work. This study investigates the current status quo of the Austrian Green Belt initiative in regard of organisational structures and conservation activities. Furthermore, a spatial analysis of one specific part of the Austrian borderlands, the Lower Austrian Green Belt, sheds light on the value of this region’s landscapes for nature conservation and clearly shows that the Iron Curtain’s preserving effect is still present in proximity to the border. The conserved valuable cultural landscapes and (semi-) natural biotope areas can and should contribute to the Lower Austrian Green Belt’s integrity and the functioning of the ecological network. The Green Belt’s conservation and ecological development crucially depend on guiding concepts coordinated across borders as well as across sectors and administrational levels. This study compiles components of such concepts on municipal level for the Lower Austrian borderlands, suggesting that adapted approaches be used for different landscapes in order to make optimal use of current preconditions for conservation. Conservationists and members of the Green Belt initiative will find concrete suggestions for future development of the Austrian Green Belt initiative and of the Lower Austrian borderlands in this study. Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... 3 Tables ......................................................................................................................................... 7 Figures ........................................................................................................................................ 8 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 9 2 The Green Belt’s Project History ....................................................................................... 13 3 Concepts and Methods ..................................................................................................... 15 3.1 Exploratory Interviews: The Austrian Green Belt initiative ....................................... 15 3.2 Spatial Analysis: Status quo of the Lower Austrian Green Belt ................................. 17 3.2.1 Cultural Landscape Classes ................................................................................. 18 3.2.2 Conservation Value ............................................................................................ 19 3.2.3 Protection Status ................................................................................................ 26 3.2.1 Mean distance from border and mean altitude ................................................ 29 3.3 Expert interviews: Guiding concepts for the Lower Austrian Green Belt ................. 30 4 Results ............................................................................................................................... 33 4.1 Exploratory interviews ............................................................................................... 33 4.1.1 The Austrian Green Belt initiative ...................................................................... 33 4.1.2 Aims and guiding concepts ................................................................................. 39 4.2 Spatial Analysis of the Lower Austrian Green Belt .................................................... 43 4.2.1 Cultural Landscape Classes ................................................................................. 43 4.2.2 Conservation Value ............................................................................................ 47 4.2.3 Protection Status ................................................................................................ 50 4.2.4 Cultural Landscape Classes, Conservation Value and Protection Status ........... 53 4.2.5 Conservation Value, mean distance from border and mean altitude ............... 54 4.3 Expert interviews ....................................................................................................... 56 4.3.1 The Green Belt region ........................................................................................ 57 4.3.2 Guiding concepts ................................................................................................ 60 4.3.3 Indicator and flagship species ............................................................................ 71 4.3.4 Conservation measures ...................................................................................... 84 4.3.5 Suggestions for methodological improvement .................................................. 91 4.4 Exemplary guiding concepts ...................................................................................... 93 5 5 Conclusions ....................................................................................................................... 97 5.1 The Austrian Green Belt – current situation and suggestions for the future ........... 97 5.2 Conservation planning – recommendations for the development of guiding concepts ...................................................................................................... 101 6 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... 108 7 References ...................................................................................................................... 109 7.1 Literature ................................................................................................................. 109 7.2 Legal documents ...................................................................................................... 111 7.3 Web resources ......................................................................................................... 112 8 Appendix ......................................................................................................................... 114 8.1 Maps ........................................................................................................................ 114 8.2 Lists .......................................................................................................................... 123 8.1 Interview questionnaires ......................................................................................... 129 8.1.1 Exploratory interviews ..................................................................................... 129 8.1.2 Expert interviews .............................................................................................. 133 9 Zusammenfassung ......................................................................................................... 134 10 Lebenslauf ....................................................................................................................... 135 6 Tables Table 1: Interviewees in exploratory interviews ....................................................................16 Table 2: Weighting factors for Conservation Value indicator variables ..................................24 Table 3: Interviewees in expert interviews............................................................................30 Table 4: Number of municipalities per Cultural Landscape Class and Conservation Value class ........................................................................................53 Table 5: Number of municipalities per Cultural Landscape Class and Protection Status class ............................................................................................53 Table 6: Guiding concept components per Cultural Landscape Class ....................................63 Table 7: Indicator and flagship species per Cultural Landscape Class ....................................73 Table 8: Measures per Cultural Landscape Class ...................................................................84 Table 9: Cultural Landscape Classes, Conservation Value and Protection Status of Lower Austrian Green Belt municipalities .......................................................... 123 Table 10: List of cultural landscape types after Schmitzberger et al. 2003........................... 128 7 Figures Figure 1: Cultural Landscape Classes in the Lower Austrian Green