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Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences International Workshop: Small Holder Timber Production Systems Social, policy, legal and investment frameworks Austrian Case Study Herbert Hager and Gerhard Glatzel Slide 2 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Austrian Forestry Sector Slide 3 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Austrian Forestry Slide 4 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Hemerobie der sterreichischen Wlder Slide 5 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Austrian Forestry: Tree Species and AAC Slide 6 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Austria a Small Holder Forestry Country Aproximately 220000 small holders 90% of these are holding less than 2ha Slide 7 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Legal and Social Framework Austrian Forestry Law 1975 /2002 Forest land has to remain under forest utilization No clearcut larger than 0.5 / resp. 2.0ha No sale on the stump Reforestation/ regeneration duty of the owner (penalty) Forest land must render services to the public e.g. free recreational use or nature conservation. National and EU conservation & environmental laws Natura 2000. (chances... conservation contracts) National and EU wood products and trading standards Certification for SH Slide 8 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences S H Timber Producers and their Problems in Austria &CE Small Holders minor players in the market, can not offer volume to the industrial buyer Small Holders have higher costs, because of problems with mechanization and utilization of machinery Small Holders often produce on inferior sites due to land degradation from historical landuse practices Small Holders are undergoing social change (urbanization, abandonement), have lost the knowledge or interest in managing forests Small Holders love planting conifers (spruce, pine) Small Holders get less for their product (-10 to 20 Euro) Difficult timber certification process Slide 9 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Strategies against these drawbacks and disadvant. Organizational measures...chamber of agriculture and its forestry advisors and consultants Organized timber auctions (espec. val. hardwoods) Small Holder Forest Growers Associations (WWG), Forest Tending and Marketing Associations, Forest Machinery Users Association (Maschinenring)....Subsidies Incentive Programs for regeneration or afforestation of higher tree diversity forests and amelioration projects Contracted nature conservation projects (e.g. Naturwaldzellen) Stimulation and award programs (e.g. Austrian Farm Forester of the year, Excellence in Forest Tending) Slide 10 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Strategies against these drawbacks and disadvant. Value added chain taken up by SHTGrowers; Diversification... Provider for heating and electricity Pan European Process.... PEFC Certification---- makes FSC also available to SHT Growers, Certification of WWG SHT enterpreneurship (ongoing research) Slide 11 Universitt fr Bodenkultur Wien Department of Forest and Soil Sciences Thank you for attention ! And cool down with an Austrian winter landscape, where even trees take a break from growing.