| Steigerwald | |
|---|---|
 View from the Zabelstein looking north over theSchweinfurt Basin | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Scheinberg |
| Elevation | 498.5 m above NHN |
| Dimensions | |
| Area | 1,115.2 km2 (430.6 sq mi) |
| Geography | |
  Steigerwald | |
| State | Bavaria |
| Range coordinates | 49°36′51″N10°17′14″E / 49.61417°N 10.28722°E /49.61417; 10.28722 |
| Parent range | Franconian Keuper-Lias Land |
TheSteigerwald (German pronunciation:[ˈʃtaɪɡɐvalt]) is a hill region up to498.5 m above sea level (NHN)[1] in theBavarian-Franconian part of theSouth German Scarplands betweenWürzburg andNuremberg. It is part of theKeuper Uplands, and within it, it is continued to the north-northeast and right of the riverMain, by theHaßberge, and to the south-southwest by theFranconian Heights. Part of the region is a designated as theSteigerwald Nature Park.
The Steigerwald lies at the junction of the Bavarian provinces ofLower,Middle, andUpper Franconia, thetripoint being marked by theDreifrankenstein. It is located between the cities ofBamberg,Schweinfurt, Würzburg, and Nuremberg. In the north, it is bounded by the course of the river Main, and in the east by the riverRegnitz. Its southern boundary is formed by the riverAisch, and in the west by the Main again and a line fromMarktbreit viaUffenheim toBad Windsheim.
The Steigerwald covers the territories of six counties:Bamberg,Erlangen-Höchstadt,Haßberge,Kitzingen,Neustadt an der Aisch-Bad Windsheim, andSchweinfurt.
The Steigerwald is divided into these natural regions:[2][3]
Among the hills and high points of the Steigerwald are, sorted by height inmetres abovesea level (NHN) (unless otherwise stated these are based on[1]):
Due to the steep slopes on its western side, most of the larger rivers rising in the Steigerwald flow in an easterly or southeasterly direction. They do not usually flow directly into the River Main in the northeast, but empty either into the Regnitz in the east or its tributary, theAisch, which flanks the Steigerwald in the southeast and forms a natural dividing line with the heights of the Franconian Heights.
Theserivers and streams rise in the Steigerwald and flow in an easterly direction (arranged north to south):[1]
The main transport arteries passing by the Steigerwald are theA 70 in the north, theA 7 in the west, and theA 73 in the east. Crossing the hills and nature park is theA 3, the main road link betweenFrankfurt, Wurzburg, and Nuremberg, and the federal roads of theB 22,B 286, andB 8.
A tourist route, the Steigerwald High Road (Steigerwald-Höhenstraße), crosses the Steigerwald in a north–south direction.
Wine connoisseurs know the Steigerwald from itsFranconian wines, which are grown in the west of the region. Well-known names includeAbtswinder Altenberg,Casteller Bausch,Handthaler Stollberg,Ippesheimer Herrschaftsberg, Bullenheimer Paradies, Wiesenbronner Wachhügel, andZiegelangerer Ölschnabel.
Large parts of the Steigerwald have been designated since 1988 as theSteigerwald Nature Park. Around half the nature park area is covered byprotected landscapes. On a smaller scale, severalnature reserves are designated.
In addition are theprotected habitats of 6029-371Buchenwälder und Wiesentäler des Nordsteigerwalds[5] und 6327-371Vorderer Steigerwald mit Schwanberg[6] as well as the EuropeanSpecial Protection Areas 6029-471Oberer Steigerwald[7] und 6327-471Südlicher Steigerwald.[8]
Within the various counties whose territories include the Steigerwald, discussions have taken place about taking parts of the forest out of use and classifying them as protected areas. Since 2008, controversy has existed over whether certain areas should become anational park or not. Proponents see this contributing to conservation and increasing tourism. Opponents fear that the designated areas would no longer be used for forestry. Since 15 January 2015, the Steigerwald clearly can no longer be aUNESCO World Heritage Site[9] because the UNESCO nomination process has finished. At a meeting in the Bavarian Parliament with Prime Minister Horst Seehofer, the Bavarian Environment Minister Ulrike Scharf, Forestry Minister Helmut Brunner, and the three county councillors of the Schweinfurt (Florian Töpper), Haßberge (Wilhelm Schneider), and Bamberg (Johann Kalb), this was not yet known. The result then was that a working group of representatives of the two ministries and the three county councils would establish the foundations for an application for World Heritage status by the end of January 2015.
According to Töpper, a prerequisite was unity between the parties that no national park should be in the Steigerwald. Seehofer was to ensure that, by the end of January 2014, a measure adopted by the Bamberg council for a controversial, 775-hectare forest reserve in theEbrach Forest was withdrawn.[10]
Authority for the disputed protected area was withdrawn in September 2015 because it was determined to be illegal.[11] This 'illegality' was confirmed by the government of Upper Franconia. As a result, on 1 September 2015, the regulation was lifted. According to the legal view of the Government of Upper Franconia, the "regulation by the Bamberg Council for the protected landscape of 'the high beech woods in the Ebrach Forest' dated 16 April 2014 was illegal because the regulation was not covered by the enabling provision of § 29 BNatSchG." The Upper Franconian government also recorded, " the High Beech Wood is not a suitable object of protection for a protected landscape area". It is, according to the government "not an object that stands out from the landscape, as the law requires it to be. Therefore, the regulation is to be rescinded for legal reasons and also in the interests of legal clarity and legal certainly."
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