Location: Brandenburg Map
Area: 105 km²
Lower Oder Valley National Park, a sub-area of
the Lower Oder Valley International Park, is a national park in
Germany founded in 1995. It is located on the lower reaches of the
Oder in northeast Brandenburg in the districts of Barnim and
Uckermark, covers an area of 10,323 ha and was inaugurated on
September 10, 1995. The national park is surrounded on the German
side by the 17,774 hectare landscape protection area of the Lower
Oder Valley National Park. The national park forms a spatial unit
with the adjoining Polish landscape protection park Lower Oder
Valley (Park Krajobrazowy Dolina Dolnej Odry, approx. 6,000 ha) and
the Zehden landscape protection park (Cedynski Park Krajobrazowy,
approx. 30,850 ha) and its protection zone.
Since the
declarations and resolutions of the German-Polish Environment
Council in 1992, the area with its central part between the
Hohensaaten-Friedrichsthaler waterway and the Oder river, including
the adjacent area on the German side and the intermediate river
country between east and west or from Widuchowa (Fiddichow) to the
Skosnica Canal (Klützer Querfahrt) on the Polish side is considered
a cross-border protected area and bears the name Internationalpark
Unteres Odertal. The cross-border protection zone covers a total of
1,172 km² and extends over 60 km on both the German and Polish sides
along the Oder. The administration of the national park is located
on the grounds of the castle in Criewen in the national park center
Lower Oder Valley. There is also the National Park House with an
exhibition.
The national park extends over a width of two to a maximum
of eight kilometers. The east bank of the Oder (or from
Friedrichsthal the Ostoder) rises steeply to heights of up to 100 m
above sea level. NN at. The west bank of the Westoder and the canal
that runs parallel to the Oder, the Hohensaaten-Friedrichsthaler
Wasserstraße, is a little less steep and very flat in the Schwedt /
Oder area (mouth of the Wels).
Here is the only intact polder
landscape in Germany. A large area of the river basin was diked
according to the Dutch model. High winter dykes that stretch along
the western edge of the valley protect the villages. The summer
dykes, which are opened every year in November, stretch along the
Oder, so that the water of the Oder can cover the entire width of
the river valley and flow away unhindered. The polder meadows are
therefore flooded in winter and spring. The river has more space and
the risk of flooding for the port city of Szczecin is almost
eliminated.
When the tide has subsided in April, the weirs of
the summer dykes are closed again. The remaining water is pumped out
within a few days. This enables the meadows to be used for grazing
and mowing well into autumn.
The extensive river and
floodplain landscape is the habitat for many rare or protected
plants and animals, including beavers. Large flocks of migratory
birds rest on the flooded meadows. The valley of the Oder is limited
by immediately steep hillsides. On some particularly rugged slopes,
remnants of the original forests have been preserved to this day.
Other areas are now dry grass due to centuries of grazing.
Fauna of the national park
The meadows flooded in winter offer
numerous migratory birds resting places. The whooper swan is one of
the birds that can be observed here. The breeding birds of this
national park include such rare meadow breeders as the corncrake,
the ruff and the black-tailed godwit, and the oriole nests in the
alluvial forests and deciduous forests on the slopes of the Oder.
The largest breeding colony of the Black Tern is also located in the
national park.
The kingfisher and the reed warbler, one of
the most endangered songbirds in Europe, can also be observed here.
It breeds regularly in the wet meadows and reed beds of the
floodplains. Larger populations of this songbird species can
otherwise only be found in the swamp and floodplains of Poland and
Belarus further to the east.
The white storks that breed on
the roofs of the surrounding villages are particularly attractive to
visitors to the national park. The very rare black storks can also
be found, albeit very hidden, of which there are currently 3 to 5
breeding pairs.
However, otters, beavers, Montagu's harrier
and sea eagles have settled here as permanent species.
In
2006 the largest colony of white-winged terns in Germany was
breeding in the national park. 50 couples with 45 boys were counted.
The relatively long flood of the Oder and the resulting shallow
water areas provided good conditions for the birds. When the summer
heat set in, the park administration ensured good breeding
conditions.
In addition to the white-winged tern, the
white-bearded tern also breeded in the national park in 2006. 15
chicks were counted.
In the national park, the cranes gather
before their flight to the south. a. be observed from the tower in
Mescherin. Crane weeks take place regularly in autumn.
Migrating moose are rarely seen in the national park.
Special features of the Lower Oder Valley National
Park
The national park extends over a width of two to a maximum
of eight kilometers. The east bank of the Oder (or from
Friedrichsthal the Ostoder) rises steeply to heights of up to 100 m
above sea level. NN at. The west bank of the Westoder and the canal
that runs parallel to the Oder, the Hohensaaten-Friedrichsthaler
Wasserstraße, is a little less steep and very flat in the Schwedt /
Oder area (mouth of the Wels).
Here is the only intact polder
landscape in Germany. A large area of the river basin was diked
according to the Dutch model. High winter dykes that stretch along
the western edge of the valley protect the villages. The summer
dykes, which are opened every year in November, stretch along the
Oder, so that the water of the Oder can cover the entire width of
the river valley and flow away unhindered. The polder meadows are
therefore flooded in winter and spring. The river has more space and
the risk of flooding for the port city of Szczecin is almost
eliminated.
When the tide has subsided in April, the weirs of
the summer dykes are closed again. The remaining water is pumped out
within a few days. This enables the meadows to be used for grazing
and mowing well into autumn.
The extensive river and
floodplain landscape is the habitat for many rare or protected
plants and animals, including beavers. Large flocks of migratory
birds rest on the flooded meadows. The valley of the Oder is limited
by immediately steep hillsides. On some particularly rugged slopes,
remnants of the original forests have been preserved to this day.
Other areas are now dry grass due to centuries of grazing.
The meadows flooded in winter offer
numerous migratory birds resting places. The whooper swan is one of
the birds that can be observed here. The breeding birds of this
national park include such rare meadow breeders as the corncrake,
the ruff and the black-tailed godwit, and the oriole nests in the
alluvial forests and deciduous forests on the slopes of the Oder.
The largest breeding colony of the Black Tern is also located in the
national park.
The kingfisher and the reed warbler, one of
the most endangered songbirds in Europe, can also be observed here.
It breeds regularly in the wet meadows and reed beds of the
floodplains. Larger populations of this songbird species can
otherwise only be found in the swamp and floodplains of Poland and
Belarus further to the east.
The white storks that breed on
the roofs of the surrounding villages are particularly attractive to
visitors to the national park. The very rare black storks can also
be found, albeit very hidden, of which there are currently 3 to 5
breeding pairs.
However, otters, beavers, Montagu's harrier
and sea eagles have settled here as permanent species.
In
2006 the largest colony of white-winged terns in Germany was
breeding in the national park. 50 couples with 45 boys were counted.
The relatively long flood of the Oder and the resulting shallow
water areas provided good conditions for the birds. When the summer
heat set in, the park administration ensured good breeding
conditions.
In addition to the white-winged tern, the
white-bearded tern also breeded in the national park in 2006. 15
chicks were counted.
In the national park, the cranes gather
before their flight to the south. Crane weeks take place regularly
in autumn.
Migrating moose are rarely seen in the national
park.
In addition to the polder areas, the national park also has important habitats for rare animal and plant species that are located on the heights and on the slopes of the edges of the Oder Valley. For example, the downy oak, which is very rare in Central Europe, grows here, a type of oak that has velvety leaves; because the downy oak belongs in the Mediterranean vegetation, for this species it is too cold in large parts of Central Europe.
After the creation of the national park, the Oder lowlands have become an insider tip for tourists. In 2004 the park had around 150,000 visitors. As early as the spring of 1997, the then Brandenburg Environment Minister Matthias Platzeck explained: “If you add up the day and multi-day visitors who only come to the Schwedt area because of the national park, the region has an annual financial benefit of a cautiously estimated 2.6 million DM ( today 1.3 million euros). "
The starting point for partly guided walking and
cycling tours is the town of Schwedt / Oder or the National Park
Center in Criewen. A section of the now 465-kilometer-long
Oder-Neisse cycle path leads along one of the dikes. The park has a
200-kilometer network of trails, 52 marked cycling and hiking
trails, three nature trails and three climbs with panoramic views.
A little further south are the remains of Stolpe Castle
(popularly known as "Grützpott") on a hill. From the foot of the
castle ruins you have a beautiful view of the Lower Oder Valley. It
is possible to climb the castle at certain times.
Planned
further development
According to the old National Park Act
(NatPUOG) of 1995, at least half of the area of the national park
should not be used commercially by December 31, 2010 at the latest
and, with the exception of the flood protection systems, should be
left to natural development without restriction (total reserves).
From 2004 to 2006, the state of Brandenburg discussed an
amendment to the National Park Act of 1995 due to acceptance
problems in parts of the agricultural sector, the fishing
associations, the local population and the water management time
objectives for the designation of usage-free zones. In addition, it
is in favor of defining total reserves (protection zones Ia and Ib)
with restricted use to exactly 50.1% (Section 5 (2) NatPUOG). At
0.1% less, the state would have violated the Federal Nature
Conservation Act (BNatSchG). According to Section 24 (1) sentence 2
BNatSchG, an area can only be placed under protection as a national
park if it fulfills the prerequisites for protection as a nature
reserve (Section 23 BNatSchG) in the majority of its area. Mostly
means more than 50%. However, if the protected area in the Lower
Oder Valley National Park were 50.2%, this would be a violation of
the National Park Act (NatPUOG) that has been in force since 2006.
Conservationists complain that the amendment of the National
Park Act in 2006 once again gave way to the interests of farmers and
anglers.