Europe’s forests at a glance
The forest fulfils several functions all at once: it is a source of inspiration and a recreational area for people. It supplies the versatile and sustainable raw material, wood. It is a home to animals and plants alike and helps to combat climate change by absorbing CO2. For many people it is, moreover, an important source of income.
Around five percent of the world’s forests are located in Europe (with the exception of Russia). This corresponds to a total area of 215 million hectares, 114 million of which are in Germany and four million in Austria. The forests in Europe are the only ones to have sustained continuous growth in the last twenty years. This is all thanks to decade-long and sustainable forest management. In Europe, spruce, pine, beech and oak trees constitute the most common types of trees.
Who owns the forests?
In Germany, about half of the forest area is located in Bavaria, North Rhine Westphalia, Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein and is privately owned. The Federal states own around 30 percent and about twenty percent is corporate forest. A single-digit percentage is owned by the federal government. In Austria, the share of forests in private hands is even higher at 80 percent. Approximately twenty percent is accounted for by public forests, which are, on the one hand, the property of the Republic of Austria and, on the other hand, to a lesser degree they belong to the provinces and communities. Ten percent of the state forests are, in turn, managed by the Austrian Federal Forests AG (Bundesforste AG) for whom sustainability has utmost priority. In terms of sustainable forest management this means that not more wood is used, than can grow again.
Who protects the forest?
To make sure our forests remain intact for the generations to come, a series of laws has been passed for their protection. Austria for example has one of the strictest forestry laws in the world. The Federal Law Gazette has existed in German since 1975 and there are also various forest laws from the Federal states. Together they determine how the forests have to be treated. For example, these laws regulate when and how the forest is to be restocked as well as measures to fight pests. They also determine when a forest can be used for recreation and may be used by the public.
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