How is the Austrian forest developing?
The Austrian Forest Inventory 2000/02 shows an increase in forest area in regions that are traditionally not very abundantly forested. These include the province Burgenland, the Weinviertel region, the Marchfeld region and the Vienna basin.
Coniferous forests are by nature found mainly in the mountainous regions. In the lowlands and hilly country, broad-leaved forests dominate, with mixed forests in the areas in between. In the river valleys and along major rivers with regular flooding, wetland forests can be found as an ecological speciality. The Austrian forest is dominated by conifers, which by nature are very common because of the high percentage of mountainous regions. The efforts to achieve a greater ecological diversity have displayed a clear trend towards more mixed forests in recent years. The mixed and broad-leaved forest areas have increased by a total of 87,000 hectares, while at the same time the pure coniferous forest areas have decreased by 3%. The decrease in pure spruce stands by a total of 79,000 hectares is particularly significant. The increasing share of broadleaved trees and shrubs in Austria’s forests and the trend away from pure spruce stands towards mixed stands are indicators of a more natural forest management.Altogether, the Austrian forests have a stock of 1,095 billion m³ of wood, which increases by 31.28 million m³ per year, of which only two thirds are felled per year. Therefore, demand for the environmentally friendly, reproducible domestic resource wood can easily continue to rise.
25.06.2008,