Bavarian College of Forestry (WBS)

Organisation of WBS
The Bavarian College of Forestry or Waldbauernschule (WBS) was founded back in 1937 as the Teaching Centre for Private and Public Forests. After being based in Hohenkammer, Wasserburg am Inn and finally Scheyern, the WBS was established at its new location in Kelheim in autumn 2003. The Bavarian College of Forestry is now one of four special institutions of the Bavarian Forestry Administration and is the responsibility of the Bavarian State Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Munich. The operating expenses of the college are paid by the “Verein Bayerische Waldbauernschule e. V.”, “Schulverein” for short. The Bavarian Farmers’ Union, the Bavarian Association of Forest Owners and the forestry associations in Bavaria largely support this organisation.

A visit to the Bavarian Forestry School in Kelheim promised to be an interesting experience. The school, which is operated as a private establishment as opposed to a state one is regarded as being the premier training, centre in Bavaria. Whilst the course contents will be broadly similar to those taught across Europe, with obvious differences due to climate or geography, the ethos is somewhat unique.

Work guidelines at WBS

1. The Bavarian College of Forestry (WBS) is the education and training centre for private and public forests in Bavaria.
2. The Bavarian College of Forestry is the partner of forestry associations on its path to becoming an extensive service provider for private and public forests.
3. The Bavarian College of Forestry is an event centre and meeting-point for the institutions and associations involved in all types of forest ownership and management.

The Bavarian College of Forestry stages courses on a wide range of subjects. These courses are aimed at all forest owners together with their family members and their employees, as well as the organization and employees of the forestry associations.

In the general forestry sector extensive knowledge is provided on forest management. The range of topics extends from knowledge of tree types, their cultivation and use, and business management aspects through to company management. Entry is via the four-week basic course or the one-week modules 1 to 4.

In the forestry technology sector courses on power-driven saws, clearing cutting and wood handling as well as special courses on how to operate cranes and rope winches provide an opportunity to learn how to carry out forestry work in a professional manner and safely handle the utilised machinery, equipment and tools.

Forestry students and trainee forestry managers, forestry engineers and forest master craftsmen carry out certain parts of their training and advanced training at WBS.

The range of courses offered for forestry associations is gradually being extended. These courses provide assistance in how to organise general structural conditions and cope with future tasks. The course topics therefore range from association and tax law and forest management contracts through to leadership and management skills.

The existing infrastructure is also available to institutions and associations for all types of forest ownership for their own advanced training courses and conferences.

Arboriculture is not as separated from forestry as it is in the UK and the college runs a number of courses aimed at both the private and public sectors. These courses follow a very similar pattern to those of the UK apart from the that the requirements are governed by the commercial insurance companies as opposed to the Health and Safety at Work Act. Safe use of powered equipment and the appropriate use of access equipment are all featured in the college prospectus, as are climbing techniques and the use of saws from within the tree. In order to be considered competent for insurance purposes a climber would need to log 300 hours of supervised working at height after they had completed and passed the training course.

Another important distinction is the view of the waste products of both arboriculture and forestry operations. In a nutshell there is very little ‘waste’ actually produced by these operations. Virtually all of the timber and arisings have well established markets which are constantly and consistently improved and enlarged this has the effect of smoothing out any seasonal or weather related ‘blips’. There is always something to fall back on and this is an established principle that is taught throughout the range of courses offered.

General Conditions
The Bavarian College of Forestry is easy to reach thanks to excellent transport links. The new spacious building complex houses the classrooms, training rooms, workshops and the accommodation block. The College’s own restaurant and the offices are accommodated in the neighbouring renovated building. 35 single rooms and one double room, all with en-suite facilities, are available for stays lasting several days

The variable classrooms and conference rooms contain a wide range of up-to-date equipment. The workshops contain training and exercise workstations with state-of-the-art machinery, equipment and tools. The college makes extensive use of IT technology to demonstrate work related scenarios in the classroom. A training area in the College grounds and around 600 hectares of forest belonging to the College in the immediate vicinity facilitate practical experience and visual instruction and open up opportunities for many different training exercises. This includes areas that can be utilised for specific arboricultural training, for example the correct laying out and signage for roadwork’s and the stabilisation of access equipment on soft verges and uneven surfaces.

The teaching staff comprises of foresters with practical professional experience in management and the forestry service, as well as forestry and arboricultural master craftsmen with many years of professional experience. Whilst undergoing training at the college the training staff are clearly identifiable by their uniforms – students also wear a different uniform. It is worth bearing in mind that this type of work is a respected profession in Europe and entering it is often a lifelong career choice.
The kitchen team under the direction of a trained housekeeper serves the daily guests and boarding school guests freshly prepared and tasty meals every day. These meal are usually examples of the local cuisine and feature ‘forest foods’ whenever possible. It is another reminder that the forests of Germany are seen as an all round amenity supplying wood and timber for fuel and construction as well as food in the form of meat, (venison and boar for example), fungi, fruit, nuts and berries.
A sports ground, a small sports hall, skittle alley, sauna and common rooms offer a wide range of leisure activities and round off the facilities at WBS.

Excursions in the immediate vicinity include the old quarter of Kelheim, the “Befreiungshalle”, Weltenburg Monastery, the delightful Jura landscape with the world-famous Danube gorge and the mediaeval cathedral city of Regensburg.

A unique German institution, that reflects the almost mystic relationship that the German people have with both forests and trees, has been created in the heart of Bavaria at the confluence of the Rivers Danube and Altmühl. The constructive cooperation between forestry experts at all work and management levels, the location of the College on the very edge of the forest, a purpose built, sympathetically designed infrastructure and the exceptional natural and cultural landscapes open up all kinds of possibilities and ensure that the course participants enjoy a special “training” experience.