Forest condition report
Forest owners’ associations: Forest conversion is a multi-generational project
Forest with blue sky and sunshine photo
© Andreas Drouve/dpa-tmn
The Minister of Agriculture presents the inventory of the German forest. Climate change makes changes necessary – an umbrella organization of forest owners points out the dimensions of the task.
The Working Group of German Forest Owners’ Associations sees the further development of structurally rich mixed forests as an important contribution to climate protection. “This socially desirable one Forest conversion is a multi-generational project,” said the organization’s president, Andreas Bitter, to the German Press Agency before the publication of the federal forest inventory. The prerequisite for successful reforestation of areas damaged by bark beetles and for successful forest conversion are reliable forest policy framework conditions at the federal level like in the federal states.
This morning, Federal Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir (Greens) presented the inventory of the condition and extent of forests in Germany. Based on extensive samples, the study provides information about forest area, damage to trees, the proportion of tree species and wood use. It thus provides fundamental data that is important for the protection of forests, economic use and adaptation to changing climate conditions.
The forest as an important carbon sink
The binding of carbon dioxide (CO2) per hectare is much higher in young, growing forests than in older stands, so that the young forest “acts strongly as a carbon sink,” says Bitter. “On the other hand, forest management with the renewable raw material wood provides valuable, climate-friendly products. By using these, the forest optimally fulfills its function as a climate protector.”
Storms and drought as well as drought and bark beetles in particular have affected the forests in many regions of Germany in recent years. “We assume that the effects of this climate damage on the forest will be reflected in the results of the federal forest inventory, as will the successes of sustainable forest management and forest conversion,” said Bitter.
Forest ecosystem services go beyond climate protection
He described the targeted development of the forest into structurally rich, more climate-resilient mixed forests as a success. Climate resilience means resistance to the consequences of climate change. Bitter also argued that, in addition to climate protection, forest owners provide other important ecosystem services for the environment and society, from ensuring high soil and water quality to the network of paths for millions of visitors to the forests.
According to the law, the federal forest inventory must take place at least every ten years. The Federal Ministry of Agriculture describes it as the most comprehensive survey on the condition of forests in Germany and has commissioned the Thünen Institute for Forest Ecosystems to lead the study. Forests cover around a third of Germany’s entire area.
“The forest is our patient who urgently needs help,” said FDP parliamentary group vice-president Carina Konrad. The poor condition calls for action. She called for forest farmers to be given more freedom. A resilient forest of the future must also integrate non-native tree species, because not all native species can withstand increasing extreme weather conditions.