Moscow. Feb 02, 2009. /Lesprom.com/. Finnish private forest owners invested roughly Euro 21 million in voluntary forest protection in 2008. The level of nature management efforts reaches high level, too, according to a study by the Forestry Development Centre Tapio and regional forestry centres.According to a calculation made by Mr. Martti Kuusinen, Specialist on Nature Management at Tapio, the sum of Euro 21 million consists of the value of retention trees left standing in regeneration fellings, as well as of trees left standing in valuable habitats protected voluntarily. Thus, the sum represents a real-term sacrifice for the benefit of natural values and does not include the non-felling of trees due to lack of demand, for instance.
In addition to this, trees are also left standing for legally binding reasons. These represent a sum of Euro 4 million in private forests.
Leaving retention trees is not required by law, but by the forest certification. Since certification is voluntary, so is leaving retention trees. The conditions of the PEFC certification in Finland require that 5–10 retention trees are left per hectare, but the actual figure is higher.
In other words, compliance with the certification procedure is even better than it should be. In the area covered by the Forestry Centre of Ostrobothnia, for example, 14.5 retention trees on average are left on each hectare of regeneration felling.
The study classified private forests as those owned by private individuals, families and the industry, and not by the state.
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