FOREST MANAGEMENT AND FORESTRY METHODS IN ROMANIA MR. MARIAN STOICESCU PRESIDENT OF CONSILVA

Romania is a country with rich biodiversity and a high percentage of intact natural ecosystems. The high level of ecosystem diversity and the geographical location are reflected in the floral and faunal diversity.

The total surface of the forest fund in Romania is about 6.4 million ha and the forest composition is as follows : conifers 31% beech 32% oak 20% other hard and softwoods 17%

In Romanian forests the mean volume of wood mass per ha is 217 cubic meters and the mean annual increment per ha is 5,6 cubic meters.

Distribution of the forest on geographical areas: Mountain: conifer and beech forests covering about 66% of mountain’s area; mountains represent 30% of the territory; Hill: oak and beech forests covering 24% of hill’s area; hills represent 37% of the territory; Plain: mixed foliage and floodplain forests covering 10% of plain’s area; plains represent 33% of the territory

Forest surface per inhabitant is about 0.27 ha.In Romania forests are playing a prominent part in ecology but beside that, half of the forests play also a big part in production activity. According to their main functions, 54% of the forests have special protection functions and 46% have production and protection functions.

FOREST OWNERS million ha of forest owned by the State million ha owned by private landowners

In the next years ( ), after retroceding about 2 million ha from State to owners of forests, the juridical situation will be as follows: forests owned by State: 2 million ha and 4. 4 million ha of private forests owned by individual persons, communities, churches and associative organizations.

Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Rural Development (MAPDR), through its Department of Forests, is the responsible one for activity coordination in forestry sector and also for elaborating and promoting the projects of normative actions on forestry sector. The Department of Forests of MAPDR includes a Forest Branch which has at its orders 9 Regional Inspectorates of Forestry and Hunting. Each one of them follows and checks the applying of forest conditions by the administrators and forest-owners.

FORESTS ADMINISTRATION At this time, the Forest Administrators are: - National Forest Administration – Romsilva (a state enterprise) administrates the state forests and also part of private forest, through an agreement with forest-owners - Private Forest Districts administrates the forest owned by town halls, associative organizations churches. It was founded a number of 105 private forest districts.

NATIONAL FOREST ADMINISTRATION ROMSILVA Romsilva represents the most powerful forest administrator. At present, at Romsilva’s orders are 41 Forest Branches, one branch per county district and also a Forest Research Institute. Each one of Forest Braches has at its orders State Forest Districts which administrates both state and private forests; as for the private forests, the forest- owners should pay to Romsilva an administration fee which is varying on surface, consistency and structure of forest.

PRIVATE OWNERS In Romania there are about 500,000 individual forest- owners and most of them are not rich people; they own 1 or 2 ha of forest and they need to be supported by the state budget for their forestry work otherwise there is the danger of disappearing the forests. There is the need to establish Forest Districts, financially sustained by the state in order to create and to strengthen a sense of forestry among the people in the context of respect for forest. In order to save these forests and their owners, to develop and maintain lasting forests it is necessary to elaborate a special laws, the Forest Code which should bring solutions as it was by Romanian foresters;

FOREST MANAGEMENT Both state and private Forest Districts is treating very carefully the care work for young brushes (clearance, cleansing, pruning etc). The total surface where have been executed carrying work on forest fund is about 150,000 ha/year. At the end of 2007, all forests, no matter who owns them, will be administrated by Forest Districts. Both state and private Forests Districts should maintain the Forestry Fund surface. The manner in which the forest territory is managed is regulated by the forest management plans. They represent the basis for the forest cadastre and they establish, according to ecological and socio- economical objectives, the main management goals and the appropriate measures to achieve these goals.

FOREST MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES - The continuity principle, that refers to progressive continuity of the production functions and to the continuity and improvement of protection and social functions; - The functional efficiency principle, based on the economical efficiency of the forest management, as well on the assurance of a balance between the ecological, economical and social aspects; - The biodiversity conservation and improvement principle, with the purpose of the conserving and improving the biodiversity at all 4 levels (intraspecific genetic diversity; species, ecosystem and landscape diversity) in order to maximize the stability and multifunctional potential of the forests.

FOREST MANAGEMENT The forest management planning is carried out on forest districts and production units. Based on these plans’ data and other technical data sheets, the inventory of the forest territory is carried out at the national and territorial levels. The forest management plans are elaborated every 10 years under the co- ordination and control of the forest central public authority.

FOREST MANAGEMENT Regeneration of the forests is one of the main activities ensuring the integrity of forest fund The forest administrators’ are treating very carefully the good health assistance of the forest, the pest control and forestry care work. The maximum volume of wood mass exploitation is established by government’s decisions but still it hasn’t exceeded the annual increment of forests (14 millions cubic meters/year).

FOREST MANAGEMENT A very important activity is related to enhance the value of non-wooden products: forest fruits, mushrooms, medicinal hubs, charcoal. The total volume of gathering the harvest annually is as follows: about 1600 tons of mushrooms, 8100 tons forest fruits, 800 tons of medicinal hubs, 8000 tons of charcoal.

FOREST MANAGEMENT Lately, forest management of Romania was treating in a very special way the silvoturism and hunting; accordingly it was builds over 400 hunting chalets. The hunting management is organized in hunting areas. The minimum size of hunting areas is 5,000 ha in the plains, 7,000 ha in the hills and 10,000 ha in the mountains. The hunting areas can be found from the Danube Delta to the highest peaks of the Carpathians and the fauna is very rich: hares, pheasants, roe deer, wild boar, red deer, bears, chamois and so on. In Romania there are 10 national parks and 6 natural parks/reservations (covering over 600,000 ha) very well administrating in order to protect and preserve the environment and also for preserving and development of biodiversity.

FOREST CERTIFICATION About 1,100,000 ha state forests and about 17,000 ha private forests (it’s the beginning) have been certified in Romania according to FSC standards.

FORESTRY RESEARCH Activity of scientific research, technical assistance and technological development is made through the Forest Research Institute from Bucharest – ICAS (which was founded in 1933) and also through the Forestry Faculties from Brasov and Suceava.