private forestry in estonia jaanus aun private forest centre, member of the board
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Private forestry in EstoniaJaanus Aun
Private Forest Centre,
member of the board
General informationTotal land area 45 000 km2
Total forest area 2,26 mln ha (50%)Average growing stock 201 m3/haEstonian forest categories:Commercial forests (69,4%)Protection forests (22,6%)Protected forests (7,7%)
Dominant tree species in privateforests:
Birch (33%), Pine (28%), Spruce (20%)
Annual felling volume:7 – 10 mil. scbmPossible sustainable cut: up to 15 milj.
scbm
General information-private forestry
Area of private forests:ca 1 mil/ha (50%)Number of owners: ca 100 000 (includes very small owners)Owners types: physical and legal bodies (about 25%of private forests belong to the companies)Average size of forest property: ca 10 ha Very fragmented division of forest estates!Annual felling volume ca 6 mil. sbmCommon forest owner: Ordinary Estonian, living far from property and
having no forestry education
Private forests – tree species (ha)
Private forests – what to do with the wood?
The structure of Estonia's forest-based industries consists of all of the main branches of the forest industry, but the pulp and paper industry is relatively small
• Good domestic market for sawlogs - demand is higher than supply.
• Unstable market for pulpwood – very little domestic market, most of the pulpwood is exported to Scandinavia. Domestic use is for the aspen and in very modest amounts for spruce and pine.
• Energywood - a star of tomorrow(?) but looser of today!
Other owners State forests are
managed by State Forest Management Centre (RMK), please visit http://rmk.ee/en
Very little municipal forests
Very little forests of churches and congregations
Private forestry - rootsPrivate land ownership was dominant before
expropriation in 1940
All land belonged to the state during the Soviet era, private forests mainly belonged to collective farms.
Ownership reform started in 1991. Two ways for re-creation of private ownership:
1)restitution;
2)privatisation
Private forestry – situation in 2013
Land reform almost completedMany passive ownersForest resources underutilised (especially
species like alder, aspen)Volume of silvicultural works (pre-
commercial thinnings, restoration of drainage systems) too modest
Challenges for private forestry
Activating private forest owners more silvicultural work (aims for 2020: 30% more pre-commercial thinnings;
tripling of area of thinnings)
better growing conditions
higher gross annual increment
Measures to motivate forest owners
Tax regulationsForestry legislation – less
bureaucracyA well-functioning support
system
Support system for private forestry - organisations
Forest Owners
Forest Owner`s Associations
Estonian Private Forest
Union
Central Co-operative United Forest Owners
Private Forest Centre
Estonian Timbertrade Center
Private Forest Centre
Foundation under the Ministry of Environment. Private legal body, but financed by the state.
People: 35 (+15 local controllers)
Aim: promotion of private forestry
Tasks: Administration of subsidies to private forest owners
(about 8 mil. eur a year) Development activities for private forestry (supporting
of associations, advisory system, training courses, information materials, international projects etc.)
Private Forest Centre Supervisory Board (5 persons)
Board (2 persons)
Administ-ration unit
Development Unit
Unit of Subsidies
Control Unit
Internal Control
Auditing Committee
Private Forest Centre - subsidies
•Activity Budget for 2013 mil.
eur
NATURA 5
Investments to forestry (thinning, pruning, machinery)
2,5
Forest Management Plans 1,0
Forest regeneration 0,6
Support to FOA`s 0,5
Extensionist service (advisory system) 0,4
Forest draining 0,4
Protection of key habitats 0,13
Maintenance of cultural heritage 0,03
Private Forest Centre – partner in the projects
Projects mainly in the field of woodenergy: Bioenergy Promotion Woodenergy and Cleantech WETNet (“producing” of supertrainers in woodenergy
issues)
Exchange of experiences with forest sectors in other countries (mainly Finland, Sweden, Germany, Latvia)
All projects, that are targeted to activate forest owners are very welcomed!
Private Forest Centre – co-ordinator of support system
Strenghtening the network of forest owner`s associations (FOA) by:Providing direct financial support and assessing its impact;Training the key persons of FOA`s;Advertising the services of FOA`s to forest owners (campaigns in TV, newspapers)
Forest Owner`s Associations
Number of FOA`s – more than 20 activeHistory: first associations established in the middle on nineties.
Attempts to organise wood sale and forest management. Result: collapse
New wave in the beginning of this century. Different approach: not for profit groups, only „soft“ services
Change from 2008 – FOA`s as providers of forest management services
Forest Owner`s AssociationsWhat could forest owner get from FOA: Information Advice (courses and individual advice); Applying for subsidies from Private Forest Centre; Support for silvicultural activities; Representation in local policy questions (i.e. hunting,
nature protection)
- Joint wood sale (not in all counties!)
Trend: from soft organisation to forest management organisation
Forestland represented by FOA`s (ha)
Advisory/extensionist system – individual advice
Very strongly linked to the system of Forest Owner`s Associations!
FOREST OWNER – needs advice, gets advice
ADVISOR – provides advice
ASSOCIATION – co-ordinates activities of extensionists on the county level
PRIVATE FOREST CENTRE – trains advisors, finances provided advice
Advisory/extensionist system - advisor
Prerequisities to become an advisor:Forestry educationAt least two year practise in forestry sectorGood communication skills
A special exam has to be performed in order to get a professional certificate of advisor (certificate is issued by The Rural Economy Research Centre)
In total we have 80 advisors, but only ca 20 of them work as full-time advisors
Advisory/extensionist system - financing
From 2014:Every member of FOA can get 15 hours advice for free every year;Non-members have to pay 30% of costs of advice (from 2015 50%)
PFC pays 26 eur for hour (but not more than 15*26) to FOA who transfers money for advisor. All costs that exceed this level must be paid by the client.
Advisory/extensionist system - training of advisors
Forming up of special training package for every year by PFC.
Main topics:Communication trainingForestry legislationTaxation issues
For advisors the traning is free of charge
Advisory system – group advice
Target groups:Staff of FOA`s (incl. advisors)Forest owners
Division of tasks:FOA trains forest owners;PFC trains staff of FOA`sForestry schools provide more comprehensive courses
Cases when PFC trains forest owners:Specific topics crucial all over the country (for example changes in the taxation legislation)Provision of written information/training material
Advisory system – group adviceMethodology:
Public announcment by FOA1-2 topicsLectures in- and outdoor (duration 3-4 hours)
Most popular topics:
Taxes, subsidies, wood sale, silviculture
Every year about 2 000 forest owners participate in the group advice events organised by FOA`s
Challenges
Smarter forest owner can not be the only outcome of provided advice.
Advice has to lead to activities in the forest!
A well-functioning advisory system means better forests!
Our expectations for the project
To learn from the experiences of the partners:How the advisory system has been made attractive for forest owners?How the good quality of advice is quaranteed?How is quaranteed, that advice will be implemented in the forest?
… and many other things to learn!