Sources of Life

Springs and spring brooks are sensitive special ecological sites and biodiversity hotspots. However, these habitats are highly endangered by anthropogenic influences and many of the spring specialists are on the Red List of endangered species. The reasons for the threat are manifold: backfilling, enclosures, groundwater abstraction, overgrazing, cattle trampling and increased organic pollution. As part of this project, two impaired spring systems are to be restored to a near-natural state and the typical spring communities re-established. The planned implementation measures include the construction of a buffer zone around the spring area (pasture fence), the introduction of dead wood along the upper reaches of the spring stream and the partial cessation of riverbank management. Continuous monitoring of two indicator groups - stoneflies and caddisflies - serves to verify the effect of the measures. The interested public is involved in the project through local information campaigns and public relations work. In dialogue with scientific experts, a supra-regionally applicable action guide on the topic of spring protection and renaturation is also being developed, which will make a decisive contribution to the long-term improvement of this endangered habitat.