Croatian foresters limit logging to maintain a balance between conservation and economy. This approach has resulted in high biodiversity and 640 million tons of carbon storage.
Forests and forest lands cover almost half (47.5%) of the land area of the Republic of Croatia. According to the ownership structure, 76%, or slightly more than two million hectares, are state forests, which are mainly managed by the company Hrvatske šume (73%), while 3% are managed by other state institutions (protected areas or special-purpose forests), and 24% or over 660 thousand hectares of forests are in the hands of private forest owners.
Unlike many European countries, Croatian foresters have managed to preserve their forest ecosystems in optimal condition, and today forests are one of the country’s greatest natural assets. Local foresters can proudly claim that for centuries they have been implementing what is known today as close-to-nature sustainable management. Consequently, forests in Croatia are known for their naturalness, since they regenerate naturally through self-seeding, resulting in mixed forests of native species, in contrast to many European forests that were established by planting and as a result have become monocultures.
Healthy natural forests are crucial for the preservation of biodiversity and the fight against climate change
Ninety-seven species of trees grow in Croatia, and the total number of trees exceeds 2.8 billion, as reported by the First National Forest Inventory of the Republic of Croatia (Čavlović, 2010). According to the estimate from this report, the forests of Croatia capture about 640 million tons of carbon, making them a particularly important source of carbon storage. In addition, the forest soil is the largest carbon storage area, capturing approximately 50%, while living trees capture one-third of the total stored carbon. It is estimated that 126.3 million tons of carbon are stored in private forests – about 20% of the total. For the conservation of biodiversity, dead wood is especially important and forests in Croatia contain around 33 million cubic metres of dead wood, of which 19 million is lying and 14 million is standing.
Based on the long tradition of sustainable forest management and considering the immediate global changes occurring in forest ecosystems, Croatia currently represents an “island” of preserved natural forests of high biological diversity.
The main bearer of economic functions in the forests of Croatia is the pedunculate oak. In terms of area, it ranks second after the common beech, covering an area of 210,000 hectares, but in terms of economic importance it comes first, with a share of 44% of the income from all sold logs.
Additionally, these forests play a significant role in nature protection. Close-to-nature management is especially necessary for maintaining their structure and functions in a balanced state. Thus, the basic forestry credo of permanent sustainability, biological resistance, naturalness, and preservation of the multiple functions of non-harvested forests can be preserved.
Croatian forestry professionals realised very early that wood resources should only be used to the extent that does not threaten their survival and that forests must be managed in a sustainable manner that is socially beneficial,
economically profitable, and ecologically acceptable.
As the Republic of Croatia is susceptible to climate change and since it largely belongs to the Mediterranean region, climate changes will have profound impact on ecosystem integrity, and vulnerability to climate changes is assessed as high. Sectors that are highly dependent on climate factors, such as agriculture, forestry, fishing and tourism, are particularly vulnerable.
Link to full article:
https://www.airclim.org/northern-forests-and-climate-change/forests-croatia
