Sustainable Forest Management in Austria : Austrian Forest Report 2004

Wien

Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft

2005

110 S.

Monographie

135121

Sustainable Forest Management in Austria : Austrian Forest Report, 110 S.

Growing Nature and Increasing Diversity The results of the Austrian Forest Inventory 2000/2002 were presented in January 2004. They confi rm the sustainability of Austrian forest management. The forest area has increased by 5,100 hectares per year to 3.96 million hectares. The increase in mixed and broad-leaved forests, as well as the trend towards small-scale wood utilisation methods and natural regeneration, have continued to grow. Where about half of the regeneration areas on open lands resulted from natural regeneration in the last survey (1992/1996), this is now true of almost three quarters of the regeneration areas. With the Natural Forest Reserve Programme, gene reserve forests, clone archives and seed orchards, Austria has implemented numerous programmes aimed at preserving and improving biodiversity. Enormous Wood Potential With 1.095 billion mß overbark, the growing stock has exceeded the billion mark for the fi rst time. This creates enormous potential for Austria as a logical location for a competitive wood industry of international signifi cance. Even so, only 60% of the annual wood increase in productive forest is actually being used, and the thinning reserves have risen to a record mark of 64 million mß. The forestry policy is called upon to set a special focus on mobilising these unexploited resources to a greater degree by using all the instruments available, such as training and education, research, consulting and promotion. Forest Burdens Conservation of the forest and its values requires permanent effort. External infl uences, such as air pollution, excessive game populations, disturbance of game through tourism, traffi c and settlement activities, and forest pastures result in regional burdens on the ecosystem, but generally do not threaten the forest in its existence. However, both the grazing and bark-peeling damage situations have shown a slight deterioration compared with previous years. The results of the Austrian Forest Inventory 2000/2002 have made the forest-game problem quite clear. From time to time, storm, snow and other weather-related disasters with their subsequent mass propagation of forest pests cause quite signifi cant, but usually regionally limited, economic damage and impairment of forest functions. In recent years, storm and bark beetle damage has been particularly severe.