Summer storms create timber surplus and calls to ban imports of wood

The July storms across the country have caused the destruction of 3.5 million of cubic meters of forests. This means that the domestic market has a large surplus of timber. The Environment Ministry has approached the Infrastructure Ministry with a motion to ban the import of wood until 2003 as a way to partially solve this problem. "I hope our request will be examined on the earliest opportunity by the Cabinet. Although we have signed free trade contracts, our unusual circumstances demand unusual solutions. The cost of cleaning up the mess left behind is at least zl. 160 million alone," said Environment Minister Stanislaw Zelichowski. The hurricane, which recently passed over the Mazury lake district, destroyed over 20 hectares of forest and caused losses of zl. 300 million. The price of timber from these areas is likely to drop by up to 15%. The State Forestry Commission, which manages the destroyed areas, does not exclude the possibility of selling wood at cost price. (Puls Biznesu, p. 3) A.K.