Germany

Biodiversity captured worldwide attention at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro when 150 nations signed the Convention on Biological Diversity. Although most countries by now have had some experience planning and implementing biodiversity-related measures, few have approached them in the comprehensive, integrated manner required by the Convention.

A straight forward presentation of the keynote papers and case studies prepared for the workshop on coastal marine biosphere serves held in 1989. The keynote papers together provide an excellent digest of the different factors to be considered in biosphere reserve planning, examining constraints across the full range of physical to socio-economic spheres.

Grasslands are an overlooked and poorly protected habitat even though semi-natural and managed grassland covers 10-20% of most central and eastern European countries. As agriculture intensifies, the extent of these already scattered sites and their species richness is declining. This report brings together information on the status, distribution, vulnerability and current conservation of primarily lowland grasslands in eight countries plus the western Republics of the former USSR.

This summary of the environmental situation in each of the East European countries from early 1988 to the end of 1990 focuses on the important environment-related changes occurring in the region, and shows the overall framework of environmental activities and issues providing an overview of past, current and future developments in legislation and status.