The Polish forest management model has been functioning successfully for almost a hundred years and is a model for other European countries. The forest provides an ecological raw material: wood, is a place for active recreation and a source of forest fruit. It is also the driving force behind the Polish economy, generating 2% of GDP. Keeping this national asset in Polish hands is a priority task, emphasizes Józef Kubica, Director General of the Forestry Commission.
So far, all crazy ideas and attempts to introduce regulations that would result in a change in the ownership structure of Polish forests have been successfully torpedoed. It doesn’t matter who initiated the introduction.
The PO-PSL government’s failed attempts to privatize forests
Although it sounds incredible, such intentions have been suggested in recent years by Poles, and more specifically by representatives of political parties. The PO-PSL government launched a series of attacks on national forests. In the autumn of 2010, it adopted a draft amendment to the Public Finance Act, which required public finance units to deposit their money into the accounts of the Ministry of Finance. The idea was that institutions, state offices, local governments, health care units, the National Health Fund and the Polish Academy of Sciences would deposit their free money not in the banks, but in the account of the Ministry of Finance. The State Forests State Forest Holding would be included in this sector. Professor Szyszko, then a PiS MP, said this would be an introduction to the privatization of forests.
What failed in 2010 was implemented a year later in an extremely soft manner. This is a postulate of the Program Council of the 2nd European Financial Congress, which discussed the State Property Fund. It would be used to establish the Infrastructure Development Guarantee Fund. The properties of the Ministry of Finance, including the National Forests, would go there. This idea was also suppressed thanks to social mobilization. The signature collection campaign continued uninterrupted. In 2014, 2.5 million Poles spoke out in defense of the forests!
The PO-PSL government wanted to include Polish forests in the constitution. Ostensibly it was about protection against privatization, but in reality it opened the way to privatization. The draft amendment to the Constitution assumed the addition of a fragment to the Constitution: “Forests owned by the Ministry of Finance are not subject to ownership transformations, except in the cases specified in the law.” Ultimately, the constitution was not amended; only five votes were decisive.
EU efforts in Polish forests
This time an attempt to take control of Polish forests appeared at the international level, within the structures of the European Union. Let us remind you that in January this year a scandalous vote took place in Brussels. The EU Environment Commission has issued a positive opinion that forestry should no longer be the responsibility of the Member States. Eurocrats would decide Polish forests! All this took place during a meeting of the EU Commission for the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI). His task was to provide opinions on the European Parliament’s proposals regarding the amendment of the Treaties. Among them was the one that shocked foresters and all forest lovers in Poland. It turned out that the Commission accepted the proposal to exclude forestry from the sovereign powers of the Member States and transfer it to the EU level. That is why officials in Brussels could decide on forests in Poland.
And this shouldn’t happen. We could see what forest management in the EU looks like in the Białowieża Forest. In the name of EU regulations, the possibility of active forest protection was blocked. We saw that the loud protests of some pseudo-ecologists were perfectly echoed in Brussels. Since the slogans on the banners were more effective than the scientific research and studies of professors, we have serious reasons to doubt this “effective forest management from Brussels”. Forests cover 1/3 of Poland and no less than three of Belgium. You can be sure that there are people and interest groups who see this as an area for investment. They do not look at the beautiful nature, but at what is hidden deep in the earth. Even if they do not want to benefit from mineral extraction themselves, they may want to prevent the Poles from doing so. Becoming dependent on imported raw materials. Successive and gradual transfer of national powers to Brussels. It is the duty of foresters to raise the alarm if this dangerous process affects this area.
The Polish forests are in good condition
Polish forests are among the leaders in Europe in terms of abundance (i.e. the amount of wood per unit area or, more simply, the number and size of trees). The wood stock amounts to over 2 billion m3! This situation is due to its location in the temperate climate zone, but also to the consistently pursued forest policy. The wood harvested per year amounts to only about 2%. which grows in forests, constantly increasing the abundance of Polish forests. The abundance is increasing despite economic work in the forests and millions of cubic meters of wood reaching Polish homes in various forms every year. Today it is three times higher than after the end of the war!
Moreover, Poland has an impressive forest cover. It is nothing more than an indicator that determines the extent to which a certain area is covered by forest. It is given as a percentage, which represents the ratio of the area covered by forests to the total area of a given area. Currently, forest cover in Poland stands at 29.6%, meaning that forests cover almost a third of the country. It wasn’t always this way. In 1946 this percentage was only 20.8 percent. Thanks to the efforts of foresters, the forest area in Poland has increased by almost half! No other European country has recorded such a sudden increase in forest cover.
The Polish forests are becoming increasingly noble and older. Usually trees between 40 and 80 years old grow there. The average age of the forest is 60 years, but foresters observe a constantly increasing number of trees older than 80 years. Since the end of the Second World War, the area they cover has increased from 0.9 million hectares to over 2.3 million hectares today. Tree stands over 100 years old cover 14.9% of the forests managed by the National Forests. surface.
In the lowlands and highlands, pine is the most common species (about 60 percent of the forest area), while in the mountains spruce (in the west) and spruce with beech (in the east) predominate. Pine dominates for a simple reason: the forestry industry has the worst quality soil that pine can tolerate. Our ancestors planted fields on fertile land. However, such forests proved to be less resistant to climatic factors. They also easily became victims of pest attacks. Therefore, the presence of more resistant deciduous species: oaks, maples, beech and linden is constantly increasing in Polish forests. Just after the Second World War that was still 13 percent. Today, deciduous stands cover almost 32%. surface.
In the State Forests, a significant part of the areas they manage fall under various forms of nature protection. In 2011, there were 1,255 nature reserves in the area managed by the Forestry Commission, with a total area of 124,556 ha. In 2021, this number increased to 1,289, resulting in a total increase in their area of 250 ha.
We will also find about 11,000 natural monuments or 3,990 species protection zones.
Forest rangers ensured the comfort of staying in green areas. The forest fulfills an extremely important function for society. Poles have the opportunity to get in touch with nature and spend their free time in the bosom of nature. Just one hour is enough to reach the forest from anywhere in Poland!
Forest statistics are equally impressive in this regard! Forest rangers have built and maintained more than 20,000 km of hiking trails, almost 4,000 km of bicycle paths, approximately 3,200 forest parking lots and parking spaces, and more than 600 campsites and campsites available to the public. It is also a free educational offer of the State Forests: more than 1,000 educational trails, almost 600 educational shelters and more than 300 educational rooms and forest education centers.
The condition of Germany’s forests leaves much to be desired
For example, the opposite happens with forests in Germany, so it is no wonder that Polish forests have become the object of interest among European dignitaries. As you can read in the annual report on the state of forests in Germany, almost 79 percent of the trees no longer have a full crown, and around 35 percent of trees are seriously affected by thinning. The data can be troubling because one of the most important indicators of a tree’s health is the condition of its crown. In recent years, the buds have become weaker and the trees are losing needles and leaves.
A tree can be sick even if it looks healthy to people and the leaves are green. However, some scientists estimate that as many as four in five trees may currently be diseased
– writes “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”.
Data from the Federal Ministry of Food Policy and Agriculture shows that this 450,000 hectares of forest requires reforestation.
An important problem occurring in German forests is the gradation (rapid increase in the number of an animal species and the sudden appearance of a significant number of them in a given area) of the bark beetle. In zones that are areas where forestry interferes with the forest stand, infected trees are cut down.
The specificity of the forests in each country is different. Just like the model to manage them. The method of forest management developed in Poland is effective and works perfectly, and its effectiveness is determined by nothing other than the condition of our forests. Therefore, other countries, including the European Union, can look at our style of forest management and even follow its example, but any attempt to interfere or influence decisions about Polish forests must fall solely within Poland’s sovereign and independent area of competence to stay.
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Source: wPolityce