Monday, October 4th, 2021
Lower Saxony & Bremen
Helicopters scatter lime over forests in the heather
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Unterlüß (dpa / lni) – In the Lüneburg Heath, many forest areas will be limed from the helicopter in the coming weeks – the action starts today (8:00 a.m.). This is intended to ensure the preservation of the trees and to compensate for the pollution of the soil by pollutants such as acid rain. A total of around 4500 tons of lime is scattered from the helicopter, but also from the ground.
The focus of the liming of the forests this year is on areas near Unterlüß. Forest visitors and especially the currently numerous mushroom pickers should avoid the areas, said forest office manager Arne Sengpiel. But there is no liming on the weekends. “The lime is completely harmless to humans and animals,” emphasized the head of the forestry office.
The forests in Lower Saxony have been limed since the 1980s – at that time as a reaction to forest death, which was becoming acute for the first time. The over-acidification of the soil leads to the fine roots of the trees being damaged. The affected trees become more susceptible to diseases – on the other hand, the lime is supposed to help so that further acidification of the soil is buffered.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 211003-99-465579 / 2
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