The European Commission has published its proposal for collecting forest data in the EU.<\/p>\n
The regulation proposal sets the rules for data collection. In addition, it encourages member countries to make voluntary, long-term forest plans. There is also a presentation on the Commission's extensive authority to issue regulations regarding the issue.<\/span><\/p>\n The draft regulation will next be considered by the Parliament and the Council. It is likely that the processing of the regulation will not be completed before next summer's European Parliament elections.<\/p>\n Commission: The proposal corrects shortcomings and helps decision-makers<\/strong><\/p>\n According to the Commission, the new regulation would correct the gaps in the information on European forests. At the same time, a comprehensive forest data base would be created so that member states, forest owners and other actors could react better to the growing pressures on forests and strengthen the forests' resilience to disturbances.<\/p>\n Better monitoring of forests would enable measures to make forests more resistant to various types of damage. In addition, new business models are enabled and compliance with the agreed EU legislation is supported.<\/p>\n A forest monitoring framework would enable the collection and sharing of timely and comparable forest data. The framework would be based on current national actions, but would provide more agile information for decision-makers. Current information on the state of forests and the use of forest resources and services is fragmented and incomplete, the Commission estimates. The data is often out of date and is produced using different definitions.<\/p>\n The monitoring framework would help to create an integrated forest administration by ensuring cooperation between member states. In addition, it would encourage member countries to draw up long-term forest plans that take into account all relevant political dimensions and the multiple uses of forests. The proposal does not introduce new direct administrative requirements for companies and forest owners, the commission assures.<\/p>\n Swedish forest industry signals the regulation's inefficiency<\/strong><\/p>\n The Swedish Forest Industries Federation (Skogsindustriern) welcome the ambition with the proposal that the EU Commission\u00a0 on monitoring the Union's forests. But at the same time sees risks of inefficiency. It is not clear how the framework improves the state of knowledge about the different functions of the forest and its biodiversity, especially for countries with inventory systems that already participate in international exchanges on forest data.<\/p>\n ''We welcome the ambition to create better knowledge of the state of Europe's forests. At the same time, the focus on satellite data and geographic data risks partially subverting the purpose of the proposal. We already have well-functioning national inventory systems and international collaborations around data collection.\u00a0It is important that there is no duplication of work within or in addition to existing systems, and that they are not undermined,'' says Viveka Beckeman, CEO of Skogsindustriern.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n There are many Member States, including in the Nordics and Central Europe, which have well-functioning surveillance systems that have been in use for a long time.\u00a0In Sweden, the Riksskogtaxeringen has monitored the condition of the forest for a hundred years.\u00a0However, national inventory systems such as the Riksskogtaxaringen are not built to provide digital map images at the EU level, but to efficiently create a composite picture of the state of the Swedish forest by compiling data from many so-called sample areas.<\/p>\n Finnish forest industry: Commission's proposal on forest monitoring is worrying<\/strong><\/p>\n Finnish Forest Industries Federation (Mets\u00e4teollisuus ry) considers the development of the forest data collection system important. However, it is questionable that in the Commission's proposal the reporting of data is taken to a very detailed level.<\/p>\n \"The proposal is worrying and raises the question of the real purpose of the regulation.\u00a0For what purpose does the commission need such detailed information about member states' forests\", says Mets\u00e4teollisuus ry's head of international and EU forest affairs,\u00a0Maija Rantam\u00e4ki,<\/strong>\u00a0in a press release.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The European Commission has published its proposal for collecting forest data in the EU. The regulation proposal sets the rules for data collection. In addition, it encourages member countries to make voluntary, long-term forest plans. There is also a presentation … Continue reading