Rural Vision Season 2 Episode 03 | Maintaining rural landscapes is not romantic naivety: solid German ecological research saves the century-old legend of the Merino sheep
Text / Baohua Communications, Planning: Song Ruozhen
In Taiwan, China, the very mention of maintaining rural landscape ecology always seems naive and romantic. On the ground in rural areas, frontline environmental conservation operators often face challenges like these: "You say this development will affect groundwater recharge and water quality - is it really that serious?" "You tell me not to clear the weeds on the field ridges so migratory birds have habitat - will you come help me pull weeds during spring plowing? And does my one plot really make a difference?" "We can barely get by, and you still want me to care whether those cats live or die? If they can still get hit by cars, doesn't that just mean there are plenty of them?"...
Episode 3 of Season 2 of the documentary "Rural Vision" uses the story of the Merino sheep in Germany's Swabian Jura to show viewers how Germany, with solid ecological research, confronts the same pointed questions above and turns around the declining sheep-herding industry.
Juniper Heathland，A marvelous landscape co-created by nature and humans
"Oh, you're going to the Swabian region? We're also planning to go there next week for a summer holiday and spa," Mr. Albert from Huaiyang Township happily shared with us under the blazing sun of a record-breaking heat wave approaching 40 degrees. The Swabian Jura in southwestern Germany is exactly this kind of great vacation destination for Germans. In this limestone valley about the size of Hualien plus Taitung, stalactite caves, underground streams, springs and hot springs form a stunning landscape that makes one marvel at nature's uncanny workmanship.
At the same time, driving through this valley, it is hard not to notice that the landscape has a certain consistency: one side of the slope is forest, while the other side is sparse grassland dotted with clumps of thorny trees. This dry grassland with thorny plants is called "Juniper Heathland." It is not simply nature's uncanny workmanship, but a marvelous creation jointly made by nature and humans.
To protect ecology, the declining sheep-herding industry must be saved
From junior high geography textbooks we learned that wherever there is limestone terrain, the area has poor soil, is difficult to obtain water from, and is unfavorable for agricultural development. The Swabian Jura is the same. Because growing crops is difficult, a nomadic sheep-herding industry developed here starting in the Middle Ages. Following the seasons, shepherds moved through the valley with their flocks, living by following water and grass.
The flocks grazed along the way through the valley, stepping past thorny juniper shrubs, silver thistle, winged thistle and other plants, thus forming the unique landscape of "Juniper Heathland." Because of sheep herding, this agricultural cultural landscape of Juniper Heathland was created, and biodiversity became richer as a result.
Although farming conditions are difficult, the people of the valley also carved out a way to survive through the sheep-herding industry, and as the wool textile industry peaked in the 19th and first half of the 20th century, it nurtured world-famous menswear brands such as Hugo Boss. However, when wool was no longer the main raw material for the textile industry and the industry shifted to selling mutton, it still could not compete on price with mutton imported from New Zealand. The sheep-herding industry of the Swabian Jura faced severe challenges.
Imagine, under such circumstances, how could landscape ecologists and ecologists persuade everyone to "maintain the unique millennium-old landscape of Juniper Heathland"? They would probably be retorted immediately: "Fine, then why don't you come herd sheep?"
Conducting environmental surveys by designating "Biotopes"
Letting data and evidence speak is the way rigorous Germans have always done things. In order to manage and set future directions, regular censuses, cadastral cleanups and business surveys can be said to be the cornerstone of how a modern state operates.
What about environmental surveys then? Germany protected the natural environment early through national law. Starting in the 1970s, it designated "Biotopes" to conduct environmental surveys, encircling biological habitats larger than 50 sq m and worthy of protection, and protecting them by law. A Biotope is a biological habitat worthy of protection. Such Biotope types can be a patch of Juniper Heathland, a rock with rare vegetation, or a field ridge used by birds as habitat.
This kind of environmental survey, like censuses and business surveys, must be carried out every few years, and the information is accumulated in public databases, becoming the most solid statistical information for environmental impact assessments. It has also trained a large number of professionals related to ecology and landscape, and allows everyone to know which Biotopes around them are worthy of protection. (Environmental information system of the German state of Baden-Wurttemberg)
It was precisely in this process of long-term investigation and research that ecologists and landscape ecologists discovered that Juniper Heathland terrain has high biodiversity and great conservation value. Moreover, in summer the sheep are raised in the Swabian Jura area, and in winter they are moved to the Rhine valley in the Upper Swabia region for raising. Therefore, along the nomadic routes, the flocks become arks for plants and animals in various places as they move. It can be said that the sheep-herding industry enhanced the ecological diversity of the entire state of Baden-Wurttemberg. In this way, that Juniper Heathland is important, and the sheep-herding industry is even more important, is no longer merely an appeal based on ideals and emotions, but has a solid scientific basis.
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