Europe's last primeval forest under threat

Stefan Jakimiuk is the "Białowieża National Park" project leader at the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Poland.

Ever since prehistoric times the process of the transformation of natural woodland to man-made landscapes has been taking place, leading to the impoverishment of fauna and flora. As a result there are practically no more primeval forests left in Europe. Natural forests, that is those that were not planted by man and have not been affected to any great degree by his activities, are also rare. It's hardly surprising then that Puszcza Białowieska in the eastern part of the country, a third of which is comprised of natural forests, is one of the most valuable forests on the continent.

Its natural forests is what gives Puszcza Białowieska its unique character and a quite extraordinary wealth of plant, fungus and animal species. The forest's flora includes some 1,100 species of vascular plants. More than 3,000 species of fungi, some 350 of lichen and nearly 250 species of moss have been found here. There are about 12,000 animal species - mostly invertebrate. Among the 58 species of mammals found in Białowieża, there is both the smallest in the country - the shrew-mouse, which weighs less than four grams - and Europe's largest mammal - the bison, which can weigh as much as a ton.

Although Puszcza Białowieska has been inhabited for millennia, the human impact on its natural life used to be extremely limited. But World War I brought changes on a gigantic scale with the irresponsible industrial exploitation of the forest. In order to save what was the most valuable areas, a reservation called Puszcza Leśnictwo was formed in 1921, and later transformed into the national park.

The exploitation of the forest, however, was far from over. Decades later a long campaign to protect Europe's most valuable forests led to the park's expansion in 1996 to include just 16% of the country's part of the Puszcza Białowieska. In 1998, pressure from the public led to a moratorium on cutting down trees and forest stands older than 100 years or those that are considered natural. The moratorium, however, is a temporary measure until the whole of the forest is given formalized protection in the form of a national park.

The controversy over the proper way to protect Puszcza Białowieska has been raging for decades. Public opinion polls suggest that the country's population is largely in favor of a national park embracing the whole of the forest. However, this is not the case in the very forest region where many inhabitants fear the restrictions that a national park would entail.

Some opponents of the national park, however, agree that stopping an intensive scheme of cutting old trees was the right measure to protect natural forest stands. Lasy Państwowe (State Forests), which manages some 84% of the forest, doesn't share this view. State Forests management authorities, though they claim to have abandoned the policy maximizing wood output in the region, insist that the moratorium be lifted. They argue that it disrupts "normal forest management."

How then can protection and "normal forest management" be reconciled? The so-called plan of forest management in the Białowieża region for the years 2002-2011 (which cost zł. 3 million to prepare) provides some insight into the question. It shows that despite the State Forests agency paying lip service to the cause of nature protection, it is focussed on commercially exploiting the last natural fragments of Europe's forests. It plans to produce more than 1.5 million cubic meters of wood over the next 10 years - an annual average of 150,000 cubic meters, or 25%-30% more than in previous years. Hence, the authorities' declarations that they are oblivious to commercial interests are false.

The forest district management authority has been in the red for a long time with a deficit of €1.4 million (zł. 6 million) in 2001. Wood sales account for more than 90% of the district's revenue. Wood prices have been decreasing due to easy access to unlimited supplies of cheap wood from Russia and Ukraine, as well as weak demand for wood products on both domestic and international markets. In the face of these economic developments, State Forests decided that the level of forest exploitation would be sustained or even increased. The reserves that exist in the remnants of the natural forest stands (currently protected under the moratorium) are seen as a way out of poor business conditions. Even the area of 8,500 hectares, where a reservation is planned, is not exempt from intensive exploitation.

What is the future of Puszcza Białowieska? Environmental organizations, including WWF Poland, have appealed to the environment minister not to countersign the plan, which has been returned to State Forests for reconsideration. There are still, however, reasons to fear that the moratorium on the felling of old trees may be lifted, and a large part of the most valuable forest stands will be deprived of any protection at all. The WWF has, therefore, initiated the collection of signatures on a petition for the prime minister and president.

On the eve of the European Union accession referendum, the fate of Puszcza Białowieska is at stake. The question of whether this piece of common European heritage will be preserved for the future generations still remains open.