| 1. |
- Poetzelsberger, Elisabeth, et al.
(författare)
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Mapping the patchy legislative landscape of non-native tree species in Europe
- 2020
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Ingår i: Forestry (London). - : Oxford University Press. - 0015-752X .- 1464-3626. ; 93:4, s. 567-586
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Europe has a history rich in examples of successful and problematic introductions of trees with a native origin outside of Europe (non-native trees, NNT). Many international legal frameworks such as treaties and conventions and also the European Union have responded to the global concern about potential negative impacts of NNT that may become invasive in natural ecosystems. It is, however, national and regional legislation in particular that affects current and future management decisions in the forest sector and shapes the landscapes of Europe. We identified all relevant legal instruments regulating NNT, the different legal approaches and the regulatory intensity in 40 European countries (no microstates). Information on hard and effective soft law instruments were collected by means of a targeted questionnaire and consultation of international and national legislation information systems and databases. In total, 335 relevant legal instruments were in place in June/July 2019 to regulate the use of NNT in the investigated 116 geopolitical legal units (countries as well as sub-national regions with their own legislation). Countries and regions were empirically categorized according to ad hoc-defined legislation indicators. These indicators pay respect to the general bans on the introduction of non-native species, the generally allowed and prohibited NNT, approval mechanisms and specific areas or cases where NNT are restricted or prohibited. Our study revealed a very diverse landscape of legal frameworks across Europe, with a large variety of approaches to regulating NNT being pursued and the intensity of restriction ranging from very few restrictions on species choice and plantation surface area to the complete banning of NNT from forests. The main conclusion is that there is a clear need for more co-ordinated, science-based policies both at the local and international levels to enhance the advantages of NNT and mitigate potential negative effects.
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| 2. |
- Rytter, Lars, et al.
(författare)
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Availability of Biomass for Energy Purposes in Nordic and Baltic Countries : Land Areas and Biomass Amounts
- 2015
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Ingår i: Baltic Forestry. - Kėdainiai : Lietuvos Misku Institutas. - 1392-1355 .- 2029-9230. ; 21:2, s. 375-390
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- This review compiles information on the current state of the forests and analyses the potential of forest fuels for energy purposes in Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Estonia and Latvia. In these countries the forest area is 61 mill. ha, corresponding to 52% of the land areas, which is high in a European perspective where 38% of the land area is forest (EU-27). Although some forest areas are protected, 75-92% of the area can still be used for wood production. Further, substantial agriculture land areas may also be available for production of biomass for energy. Coniferous species dominate the forests in Finland, Norway and Sweden, while a more even distribution of conifers and deciduous species is found in Denmark, Estonia and Latvia. The total growing stock is around 7,400 mill. m(3) and the annual increment is estimated to about 275 mill. m(3) yr(-1) Annual growth currently exceeds annual harvest, leading to the conclusion that some of the difference may be used for energy purposes in the near future. The current potential for forest fuel resources was estimated to 230-410 TWh yr(-1) (830-1,480 PJ yr(-1)) for the countries included and forest fuels will thus be of utmost importance for the future energy supply in the area. A changing climate with larger standing volumes may affect the future growth positively and increase the potential harvest levels. Estimates from Finland, Sweden and Norway show an average growth increase of over 30% by the end of the century and substantially higher for specific regions. Wood is extensively used for energy purposes and the forests hold a large potential for increasing the production of renewable energy. The potential may be further increased in the future with increased fertilization, extended breeding for enhanced biomass production, larger cultivation areas and changes of tree species and management systems.
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