Die Rolle des öffentlichen Waldes in der modernen Gesellschaft : Jahrestagung des Hessischen Forstvereins

2001

S. 579-584

42 Lit. Ang.

Unselbständiges Werk

200090665

The necessity and the role of public forest ownership in Germany, i.e. state forests and communal forests, has been discussed intensely during the last decade. Forest history shows that the main arguments for or against public forests have been developed in the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th century. The Federal Forest Act of 1975 and the forest laws of the Länder constitute a higher obligation for public forests to serve common values of society, e.g. nature protection or recreation. However, several political and societal actors are of the opinion that most public goals of forest policy could be achieved by private forest property as well. Processes of rationalization, privatisation and communalization are changing the tasks and the shape of public forests and public fores authorities fundamentally. Taking into account that the demands of society towards environmental and social benefits of the forests will increase, it can be estimated that public forests will keep an important role in the future forest ownership structure in Germany.