The LNV ministers of at least six wooded EU countries are strongly critical of the European Commission's new forestry strategy. This is evident from statements made after the monthly agricultural council of the DU ministers.
The new forestry vision was presented in July as part of the Green Deal. and the tightened climate policy. Among other things, it advocates decommissioning part of the forest resources for logging and planting millions of new trees.
Several countries and forest operators have warned of economic, environmental and social disadvantages for the forestry sector if timber exploitation is curtailed. The ministers of Germany, France, Finland, Sweden, Slovakia and Austria already said last week, after an informal two-day meeting in Vienna, that the Commission is going beyond its limits.
“What we (...) do not need is more red tape from Brussels,” said German minister Julia Klöckner. The non-involvement of the EU countries in the preparation of the forest strategy and the failure to respect national forestry responsibilities in the sense of subsidiarity are also criticized.
The needs of the 16 million forest owners in the EU have not been taken into account. “Many measures mean a huge devaluation of our forests, which form the income base for countless families,” say forest owners and timber operators' organizations.
In their final statement, the ministers say that forests are of great importance from an economic and social point of view, but also for the fight against climate change and for the protection of biodiversity. Ministers say they largely endorse the new forest strategy, but also emphasize that it will be important to find a balance with rural development and the green and economy.