Experts are developing a plan for the maintenance of dry forests in Estonia, and controlled burning is being considered as one of the options, writes “ERR News”.
Last year, more than 112 thousand hectares of dry forests were listed in the Estonian Natura 2000 habitats. These are forests with minimal anthropogenic load, and in Estonia they are overgrown dunes, old natural forests and spruce forests with rich ground cover.
The Estonian Environmental Service, the University of Tartu and the Estonian University of Life Sciences are jointly developing a plan for the maintenance of dry forests. Taavi Tattar, Head of the Nature Conservation Planning Department of the Environmental Service, pointed out that dry forests are in poor condition both in Estonia and throughout Europe.
“They’re either too uniform in age or have impoverished structure. The problem is that there are certain species and species groups that need forests with diverse structures for their life and activities, coarse woody debris, dead trees, and so on. These species groups are particularly vulnerable here because they lack sufficient habitat. On a broader scale,
diverse forests are also more resistant to disease and better able to adapt to climate change,”
Tattar told the program Aktuaalne kaamera.
There is an agreement at the European Union level to restore forests to an acceptable state, and Estonia is also developing its own action plan. Guidelines, which must be implemented by 2030, will be available for public consultation in the fall. It is necessary to map and implement activities aimed at restoration in 9,000 hectares of dry forests. The main question now is how much and where human intervention in natural processes is necessary.
Tattar said that perhaps the best help would be to simply let the forests be, nature and time will heal everything. The storms or other events, they will create fallen wood.
However, there are several ways that people can speed up the processes in nature. For example, by cutting down trees of different diameters and leaving them in the forest, where they will decompose naturally. Another option is controlled burning, restoring the original state. This can get rid of the undergrowth and an excessively thick layer of moss, and create burnt fallen wood. Another way is to create gaps. Tattar explained that gaps in the forest are the cutting down of a small strip, leaving the trees in place. The wood gradually decomposes and creates habitat for species that need it.
It is planned that between 2025 and 2032, 4.2 million euros will be needed to preserve and restore dry forests.
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