Press release

Sustainable forest restructuring in Blankenfelde-Mahlow
BER and Eurowings employees plant trees in the airport region

Airport company (FBB) and Eurowings employees today laid the foundations for the development of a mixed deciduous woodland in Blankenfelde as part of a corporate volunteering programme. More than 40 FBB employees and 25 Eurowings employees planted various young trees – beech, oak, lime, rowan, shrubs and wild fruit. BER and Eurowings employees’ shared commitment is organised in cooperation with the Landschaftspflegeverein Mittelbrandenburg e.V. nature organisation (LPV). The newly planted trees extend the LPV’s forest in Blankenfelde. A total of 2,400 additional deciduous trees will be planted for the gradual transformation of the forest. After planting, the young trees and shrubs rise around 60 cm from the forest floor. Once the plants have taken root and start to grow, the forest will become more resilient and can provide a home for more species.

Blankenfelde is located in close proximity to BER Airport. The forest covers an area of around eleven hectares and is predominantly covered with pine trees – like around 70 percent of all forests in Brandenburg. In earlier times, this monoculture enabled simple and mechanical management and timber harvesting. However, it only provides a habitat for a few species. This is why the LPV has long been attempting to increase biodiversity in the forest through smaller-scale initiatives. Today, the sustainable restructuring of the forest was driven forward for the first time as part of a big campaign.

FBB has been involved with its company-wide corporate volunteering programme in the airport region since 2014. Employees support various projects by lending a hand while at the same time broadening their horizons outside the workplace.

Michael Halberstadt, Chief Human Resource Officer at Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH: “The corporate volunteering programme has been an integral part of our work in the surrounding area and our corporate identity for ten years – and the fact that we are supporting a project in the airport region together with Eurowings for the first time today and, in doing so, actively promoting forest restructuring is even better.”

Kai Duve, CFO Eurowings: “Fostering a good relationship with our neighbours and employee commitment rolled into one – the joint campaign with our airport partner Berlin Brandenburg for sustainable forest restructuring in the region is a perfect example of the values we live by and Eurowings’ team spirit.”

Markus Mohn, Landschaftspflegeverein Mittelbrandenburg e.V.: “As a regional neighbour, the airport company has been supporting us for many years, notably in practical nature conservation campaigns with young people. I am delighted that we are getting our hands dirty together in our forest and, in doing so, marking the start of more biodiversity.”

The LPV has been campaigning for the preservation of the cultural landscape to the south of Berlin’s city limits for 30 years. Its “Waldhaus Blankenfelde” house in the Blankenfelde Nature Sports Park allows the organisation to offer a wide range of environmental education all year round. This includes various nature and species conservation activities as well as events that encourage people to become familiar with, understand and protect nature in the region.

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