Part III, Section II, Article 141:
“(1) The protection of the natural basis of live shall be the duty of each individual and the state community, bearing in mind the responsibility for future generations. Animals shall be respected and protected as living beings and fellow creatures. Natural resources must be treated with care and used economically. One of the paramount tasks of the state, the municipalities and bodies corporate under public law shall also be
to protect ground, water and air as the natural basis of live, to remedy or compensate for any damage which may occur, if possible, and to ensure that energy is used as economically as possible,
to preserve and continuously improve the efficiency of the ecosystem,
to protect the forest due to its particular importance for the ecosystem and to remedy or compensate for any damage which may occur,
to preserve and treat with care the indigenous animal and plant species, their natural habitats as well as characteristic natural sites and landscapes.
(2) It shall be the task of the state, the municipalities and the bodies corporate under public law to protect and care for art, historical and natural monuments and the landscape, to restore degraded artistic and historic monuments to their previous purpose as far as possible, to prevent the outflow of German art treasures to other countries.
(3) The enjoyment of natural beauty and recreation in the outdoors, in particular the access to forests and mountain meadows, the use of waterways and lakes and the appropriation of wild fruit to the extent customary in the respective region shall be permitted to every person. 2 In this respect, every person shall be obliged to treat nature and the landscape with care. 3 The state and the municipalities shall be entitled and obliged to maintain free access to mountains, lakes, rivers and other beautiful sceneries and to create free access by restricting property rights and to create hiking trails and recreational parks, if need be.“