Die Situation des Kleinwaldes in Österreich : Forstpolitische und ökonomische Aspekte der bäuerlichen Waldwirtschaft

1989

S. 17-21

Unselbständiges Werk

200007478

In Austria all forests with an area up to 200 ha (500 acres) are small forests. In the main they are farm forests, i.e. an economic branch of a farm. However, farm forests can be as bis as 500 ha (1.250 acres) in Austria, because then - according to the Austrian Forest Law - a forester has to be employed, but with a leading employe (an administrator or forester) it is no longer a farm. Thus, small forests are limited to a size fo 200 ha, farm forests, however can be as bis as 500 ha. There are about 1.300 farms in Austria which have 200 to 500 ha of forests; they are all situated in the mountains, in the Alps. Small forests (up to 200 ha) cover 53% of Austria's forests, about 2 Million ha. Community forests, which belong to a group of farms, can be much bigger, up to 2.000 ha; the cover about 8% of the Austrian forest area, ca. 300.000 ha. A third kind of small forest are the usage rigths in big forest estates, in the main in the State Forests (Oesterreichische Bundesforste). For a farm and its owner a clearly and properly owned private forest is the best and most valuable kind of ownership. Part- ownership in a community forest or rights of usage are much less flexible and depend on the special regulations valid for that case. They are both called in Austria "ideal forest" in contrast to a fully owned forest. The great part of small forest in Austria is advantageous for the big forest enteprises and for the State Forests, because the small forest owners cut and sell wood very much inaccordance with the market situation, that means, they do not sell wodd, when the market is weak, provided of course that they are well and quickly informed. Thus the small forest owner contribute much to sound market balance. As a result of the bad situation of agriculture - overproduction in all branches - and the unsatisfactory income from agriculture the number of farms decreased remarkably, however much less is the decrease, when the farms are connected with a forest. Within the last 30 years an average of 12, mainly small farms were abandoned in Austria, but only 1,9 were farms with a forest. Thus, a forest makes a farm much more economically stable! The present state of small forests is rather good in Austria. The growing stock, for example, is 268 cbm over bark in the commercial small forests and 204 cbm in protection small forests; the latter are about one third of the small forest. Air pollution and damages by game are the two problems, which need political decisions, for which forests and forest owners are still waiting.