scholarly journals Did Forestland Restitution Facilitate Institutional Amnesia? Some Evidence from Romanian Forest Policy

Land ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marian Drăgoi ◽  
Veronica Toza

This paper shows how the slow process of forestland restitution, which is unfolding in Romania since 1991 has eroded the threads of sustainable forest management by an insidious institutional amnesia (IA). The four symptoms of this harmful process (frequent reorganization, transition from paperwork to electronic media, fewer people motivated to join public services, and popularity of radical changes) were analyzed from the legal standing point as well as from practitioners’ perspective. After having described the legal process and the relative dependencies between laws and government ordinances we also showed that the three laws on forestland restoration (three fully operational laws and two bills submitted in 2019, one year before general elections) were produced by unintended policy arrangements. The legal loopholes of forestland restitution were described in details as well as the challenges brought about by nature conservation policy (Natura 2000 management plans v traditional forest planning), and the overwhelming bureaucratic burden developed to deter illegal logging, instead of fully implementing a modern system of forest watching based on volunteering. However, the main cause of IA is institutional unsteadiness which was inherited from the communist regime, and cannot be alleviated unless more involvement of professional foresters in politics.

2016 ◽  
Vol 167 (4) ◽  
pp. 221-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Astrid Zabel ◽  
Eva Lieberherr

Advancement of the Swiss Forest Policy 2020 from stakeholders' perspectives In light of the ending of the Swiss “ Forest Policy 2020”, this article assesses the goals, challenges and concerns of Swiss forest stakeholders in relation to forest policy post 2020. The data were collected through expert interviews and an online survey. The results show that securing an economically sustainable forest management and economically viable silvicultural businesses are key concerns for many stakeholders. Apart from these issues, several further and sometimes conflicting interests were mentioned. The study concludes that a debate on an adjustment of the weights given to goals in the Swiss Forest Policy 2020 may be commendable. However, there does not appear to be need for a complete change of course in order to address the stakeholders' needs and concerns. In terms of policy process, most stakeholders positively evaluated the past planning and development process of the Swiss Forest Policy 2020, but also provided suggestions for improvements. Finally, a network analysis revealed that the Swiss Federal Agency for the Environment, the Swiss Forest Owners Association and the Conference of Cantonal Foresters played a central role in the amendment of the Swiss Federal Forest Act. The analysis also showed that more stakeholders find each other as important than actually work together in a legislative process.


2011 ◽  
Vol 162 (4) ◽  
pp. 128-132
Author(s):  
Christoph Dürr

International forest policy is mainly shaped by the participation of countries at global level, which is why forest-related organisations in Europe and their political processes have received little attention up to now. Meanwhile, however, global forest policy is being increasingly influenced by regional processes. Efforts are underway in the context of various European processes to put sustainable forest management on a firmer footing and make it better known outside the sector. Hence the safeguarding of national interests in the European context is becoming more important for Switzerland. This contribution presents the main forest policy organisations in Europe from Switzerland's perspective, i.e. Forest Europe, the FAO European Forestry Commission, the UNECE Timber Committee, the European Union and the European Forest Institute, so as to provide a better understanding of where European forest policy originates.


2000 ◽  
Vol 151 (12) ◽  
pp. 472-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingrid Kissling-Näf

A group of international experts evaluated whether the aims and instruments of Swiss forest policy are suitable for the promotion of sustainable forest management based on the pan-European criteria. Approach and main results are presented as well as the method developed for the definition of sustainability indicators as an instrument for the evaluation of sectoral policies and the possibility of a transfer of methods and indicators on an international level.


Conservation ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 168-181
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ismail Hossain ◽  
Shinya Numata

In protected areas (PAs) in Bangladesh, as policies shift from net deforestation, conservation initiatives and various management plans have been implemented to reduce deforestation and include public participation at multiple levels. However, the interactive effect of land-related policies on deforestation in PAs is poorly understood. In this study, land-use change analysis using geographic information system data was performed to investigate how policies affected land use and land cover change in Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary (RKWS), particularly the National Forest Policy (1979~), National Land Policy (2001~), and Agricultural Land Policy (1999~), using a series of Landsat images captured at different times. Our analyses showed that the total forest area increased in the 1994–2005 period when a plantation program was implemented, and also that many forest areas were replaced with noncommercial agricultural land areas in the 2005–2013 and 2013–2018 periods, when land zoning and co-management programs were implemented under different land-related policies. Commercial and non-commercial agricultural land expansions were the main drivers of deforestation, suggesting that several programs under the different land-related policies could have had synergetic effects on deforestation even in PAs. Our findings emphasize the importance of considering the undesirable effects of land-related policies in Pas, and the need to support the community for forest conservation.


2008 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 155-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Søren Anker Pedersen ◽  
Heino Fock ◽  
Jochen Krause ◽  
Christian Pusch ◽  
Anne L. Sell ◽  
...  

Abstract Pedersen, S. A., Fock, H., Krause, J., Pusch, C., Sell, A. L., Böttcher, U., Rogers, S. I., Sköld, M., Skov, H., Podolska, M., Piet, G. J., and Rice, J. C. 2009. Natura 2000 sites and fisheries in German offshore waters.–ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 155–169. The principal objective of sites selected as part of Natura 2000 is to achieve or maintain a favourable conservation status of habitats and species named in the EU Birds and Habitats directives. In the German exclusive economic zone, the habitat types protected by this legislation are sandbanks and reefs; protected species include marine mammals, seabirds, and specific migratory fish species. The ICES project Environmentally Sound Fishery Management in Protected Areas (EMPAS) aims to answer two questions: (i) To what extent do specific fishing activities significantly threaten attainment of the conservation objectives of the Natura 2000 sites? (ii) What management measures would reduce these conflicts and how effective would they be at helping to ensure the favourable condition of these sites? Assessments of fishing impacts on Natura 2000 sites require basic data on the conservation status of individual habitats and species, as well as data for fine-scale distributions of ongoing fishing activities. This paper describes and discusses the process used by the EMPAS project in developing fishery-management plans for each Natura 2000 site in German offshore waters.


2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 373 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Marino ◽  
Carmen Hernando ◽  
Rosa Planelles ◽  
Javier Madrigal ◽  
Mercedes Guijarro ◽  
...  

Spain is one of the Mediterranean countries most severely affected by wildfires during the last 30 years, despite enhanced fire suppression efforts. At present, forest area is increasing more in Spain than in any other European country, and also has one of the highest densities of fire ignitions. However, forest management plans have been developed for only 13% of Spanish forest areas. The objective of the present study was to assess the role of forest fuel management for wildfire prevention in Spain. Different fuel management techniques, including mechanical treatments, prescribed burning and controlled grazing, were considered. A quantitative SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis was performed, based on a thorough documentation review and on the opinions of forest fire experts. Results enabled the identification of obstacles that hinder the implementation of effective fuel management, and suggested strategic recommendations to overcome them. New opportunities related to rural development activities (e.g. promotion of ‘FIRESMART’ products) would be highly relevant in fire-prone forest areas. These opportunities should provide additional funding for sustainable forest management and could foster fuel management activities that would directly involve and benefit rural populations.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
G. Santopuoli ◽  
C. Temperli ◽  
I. Alberdi ◽  
I. Barbeito ◽  
M. Bosela ◽  
...  

The increasing demand for innovative forest management strategies to adapt to and mitigate climate change and benefit forest production, the so-called Climate-Smart Forestry, calls for a tool to monitor and evaluate their implementation and their effects on forest development over time. The pan-European set of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management is considered one of the most important tools for assessing many aspects of forest management and sustainability. This study offers an analytical approach to selecting a subset of indicators to support the implementation of Climate-Smart Forestry. Based on a literature review and the analytical hierarchical approach, 10 indicators were selected to assess, in particular, mitigation and adaptation. These indicators were used to assess the state of the Climate-Smart Forestry trend in Europe from 1990 to 2015 using data from the reports on the State of Europe’s Forests. Forest damage, tree species composition, and carbon stock were the most important indicators. Though the trend was overall positive with regard to adaptation and mitigation, its evaluation was partly hindered by the lack of data. We advocate for increased efforts to harmonize international reporting and for further integrating the goals of Climate-Smart Forestry into national- and European-level forest policy making.


Forests ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (12) ◽  
pp. 859-878 ◽  
Author(s):  
Floris Dalemans ◽  
Paul Jacxsens ◽  
Jos Van Orshoven ◽  
Vincent Kint ◽  
Pieter Moonen ◽  
...  

2010 ◽  
Vol 86 (6) ◽  
pp. 697-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
H W Harshaw

Conceptions and challenges of public participation in British Columbia are reviewed to identify those characteristicsof planning processes that serve to benefit or constrain the interests and needs of public stakeholders. Perspectives onpublic participation, including representative and participatory democracies, and approaches to incorporating publicperspectives in decision-making (i.e., shared decision-making, consensus-building, and interest-based negotiation) arepresented to demonstrate the different approaches (and their benefits and challenges) available for providing opportunitiesfor public participation. Lessons from other natural resource management contexts are distilled and used to evaluatethe BC context. Three principal forest planning and management frameworks (the Commission on Resources and theEnvironment, Land and Resource Management Plans, and sustainable forest management certification) are examinedin light of whether meaningful opportunities for public participation were provided.Key words: public participation, British Columbia, Commission on Resources and the Environment, Land and ResourceManagement Plans, sustainable forest management certification


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