Tag Archives: domogled

Large unprotected primeval forests discovered – Domogled and Valcan area

November 25, 2017DBU, domogled, forest, mapping, primeval, romania, ValcanWoodland

Ground truthing trip by German DBU-Foundation funded Forest Mapping Project in October 2017

A team of Romanian forest experts, partnering with a DBU (German Government foundation Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt) forest mapping project, recently visited mountainous areas in the southwestern Carpathians searching for threatened primary forest. Analyses of fresh satellite and aerial images had given indications of the existence of large intact forest areas with logging progressing at the edges. Unfortunately, these ancient forests are not yet protected from logging, even though they are located in the Domogled – Valea Cernei National Park and with the Natura 2000 site, Nordul Gorjului de Vest.

In Romania, more virgin forest has survived than in any other EU country. It is estimated that there are still 200,000 to 300,000 hectares of largely untouched forests in the Carpathian region. Primeval forests can now be reported to authorities and to the Romanian government for protection in its “National Catalogue of Virgin Forests” if their “primeval forest quality” is proven in expert reports. But the necessary mapping and official procedures cost time and money. To date, the government has not allocated budget for this critical conservation task. Therefore, since summer 2017, the German Federal Foundation for the Environment (DBU), thanks to the efforts of Univ. Prof. Rainer Luick (University of Forestry Rottenburg), has been supporting forestry experts in their Romanian mapping work.

In October 2017, a Romanian team of researchers set out in the Domogled – Valea Cernei National Park and the neighbouring Valcan Mountains in the Southern Carpathians to identify unprotected virgin forests and to prepare the necessary assessments for their conservation. The objective of the trip was to identify, map and submit forests for inclusion in Romania’s virgin forest protection system, the “National Catalogue of Virgin Forests”.

Magnificent wild forests survive in the upper catchment area of the Cerna River in the Domogled National Park – Valea Cernei and along the main ridge of the nearby Valcan Mountains. This was the identified through analyses of fresh satellite and aerial photos that the experts conducted prior to their trip. Unfortunately, logging is already gnawing at the primeval forest edges, even though these are national park and Natura 2000 areas. Logging workers are already on site, so it is clear to the experts, that these areas are under acute threat and demand immediate priority listing.

The registration of virgin forests in the catalogue follows a bizarre and complicated procedure. Before the experts are allowed to conduct their research, they must announce their mission to the local forestry authorities. The State Forestry agency, Romsilva, also even requires offical notification prior to the commencement of research.

So the team had to spend valuable time informing the forestry authorities about their mapping intentions. This critical research is not always received with enthusiasm by forestry authorities, even though primary forests are supposed to be protected under the Romanian Forest Code and Romanian law. Many of the primeval forests in Romania have not yet been protected because someone, either the forest owner, steward or authority favoured them to be logged and turned into money.

Domogled – Valea Cernei National Park: Iauna Craoiva UNESCO World Heritage Site. Experts found more large primeval forests there, but outside the protection zone… Photograph: (c) Matthias Schickhofer

After the inaugural visit to the local forest directors, the forestry experts finally can depart into the wilderness. The team first visited the Cerna Valley, in the heart of the Domogled National Park. Autumn had come to a brilliant climax, and the mixed beech woods were painted with intense orange, red and yellow colours. Due to the wild conditions, a strong four-wheel-drive vehicle is needed to reach upper Cerna Valley. After several hours of bumpy driving through autumnal forest halls, the expedition reached the upper end of the Iovan hydro reservoir and turned into the Radoteasa Valley. To their astonishment, there they found a brand new forest road cut through the forests, allowing easy access to the untouched primeval forest valley, both for researchers and for logging trucks.

The wild forests in the area of Radoteasa, Vlasia and Carbunele valleys have never been cut. Beech forest has been growing here since the end of the last ice age, over 6000 years ago. However, in April 2017, the local forestry authority gave permission to start logging for the first time. Shortly afterwards, the loggers arrived and the southern slope of the Radoteasa Valley was devastated successively in the summer and autumn of 2017. Today, large holes gape in the canopy of the beech forest. The forest floor has been extensively eroded by logging and destroyed for the long term. Excavators have cut brutal swathes through slopes that have never before been touched by humans.

Untouched (and unprotected) parts of Radoteasa and Vlasia valleys in the middle of Domogled National Park. Romanian experts want to save the forests by submitting expert studies to the Ministry. Photograph: (c) Matthias Schickhofer

However, the experts confirmed that the northern slopes of the Radoteasa valley and the Vlasia-Carbunele mountain complex are still intact. An estimated 600 hectares of primeval forests grow here still. But next year more virgin forests will be opened for logging.

Since this is a national park (even if in many parts it resembles an intensive logging zone), there is a far better, and more sensible alternative to this wanton destruction: the long overdue expansion of the core zone of the park and the protection of the remaining virgin forests. Currently, the core zone of the Domogled National Park covers less than half of the park. The majority of the park’s forests are not managed for conservation as national park areas should and are instead logged and destroyed.

The wild forests in the Radoteasa, Vlasia and Carbunele valleys should be integrated into the core zone as quickly as possible and linked to the primeval forests further up the tree line, which have already been mapped by the WWF and which are partially located in the core zone. The area to be protected is comparatively large at more than 600 hectares. In comparison, the largest virgin forest in the entire Alps, the Austrian Rothwald, is around 400 hectares in size.

The next exploration area was the Valcan Mountains. Twelve years ago, there were huge, completely wild forests. The first virgin forest inventory of Romania (“Pin Matra Study”, 2005) showed that Valcan was one of the country’s most important hotspots of pristine forests. However, in the meantime large areas were logged, although the whole mountain range is dedicated to the Natura 2000 conservation programme of the EU. But: there are still some large areas with pristine (but unprotected) beech and spruce forest in the upper sections of several valleys. Tragically, logging is proceeding also there.

The long term protection of these paradise forests is of course not just of interest to researchers. It represents an important basis for the development of natural and wilderness tourism, an untapped potential in Romania. In the often poverty-stricken mountainous regions of the Carpathians tourism could add substantially to the local economy. Domogled National Park has so far done little in terms of developing sustainable local economies. Intensive logging in the supposedly protected areas has been of bigger interest.

The local population does not get any long-term benefit from the extensive logging in their community. Logging companies and workers often come from other parts of the country, and workers are sometimes treated like commodities themselves. As locals report again and again, they do not see the benefits from the logging of the national park, but some forest managers own luxury cars cars and large houses.

And all that is left behind by the logging is a totally devastated forest.

Pristine beech forest in Valcan mountains, not mapped and not protected yet. A project funded by DBU / Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt and coordinated by HFR Rottenburg / Germany wants to support Romania’s efforts to preserve these forests. Photograph: (c) Matthias Schickhofer

EuroNatur and Agent Green welcome UNESCO World Heritage inscription of European beech forests

July 7, 2017domogled, forest, Government, Iauna Craiove, logging, primeval, protection, romania, Sinca, UNESCO, World HeritageWoodland

World Heritage Committee’s decision must give boost to primeval forest protection all over Europe – in particular in Romania

Radolfzell – The international foundation EuroNatur and Romanian environmental protection organisation Agent Green welcome the decision by the World Heritage Committee to inscribe 63 primeval and ancient beech forests and forest clusters to the UNESCO World Heritage List. This decision acknowledges the “outstanding universal value” of (endemic) European beech forests as a unique natural phenomenon, how a single tree species can shape large parts of a whole continent. The newly inscribed forest areas include the first ever Natural Heritage Areas of Austria – Wilderness Dürrenstein and Kalkalpen national park. In Romania paradise forests such the EU’s largest primeval beech forest of Nera Springs reserve (Semenic national park), parts of Domogled and Cozia national parks as well as Sinca and Slatioara secular forests in Romania are now certified by the World Heritage Committee.

“This is a historic move. Never before have so many different components, involving 10 nations, been inscribed to the World Heritage list. This is also a big step forward for international cooperation in nature conservation. And it is a strong signal for protection of Europe’s last primeval forests. Hopefully this decision leads to a turbo boost for forest conservation efforts all over Europe,” Gabriel Schwaderer, executive director of EuroNatur Foundation stated.

Improved forest protection is desperately needed, because ancient and primeval forests are under ongoing threat by logging in numerous European countries due to bioenergy and timber demand. In particular in Romania primeval forests are still being destroyed on a grand scale. The World Heritage list only considers areas with established protection status. But ten of thousands hectares of primeval forests in Romania do not yet have sufficient protection. “Romania must take protection of primeval forests in both state and private property seriously. The recent push by the new Government to dismantle its own forest protection laws is very much worrying. Logging of paradise forests in the surrounding of the new UNESCO World Heritage Areas must be halted immediately. IUCN explicitly filed critique about weak protection in some buffer zones of the designated World Heritage areas. Just outside the Sinca secular forest World Heritage Area, logging in primary forests, which are identical to the forest inside the reserve, continues. We call on the new Romanian Government to speed up and finalise the population of the ‘National Catalogue of Virgin Forests’ and ensure full law enforcement,” Gabriel Paun, president of Agent Green, said.

Romania hosts the largest remains of primeval and ancient forests of Europe. Nera Springs virgin forest (Semenic national park) is the biggest untouched forest stand of the EU (except Scandinavia). The world is currently looking at the disastrous logging and the deliberate destruction of precious forest stands in the buffer zone of the Bialowieza national park and UNESCO area. The strict core zone of the park protects the biggest lowland primeval forest of Europa. The tragic and stubborn logging campaign by the Polish Government is a provocation and negative prejudice for environmental protection in all Europe. Thus it needs to be stopped now.
However, almost out of sight, in Romania primeval forest is vanishing day by day on a much larger scale. Only international attention and decisive action can stop that ongoing environmental disaster in Europe.

Sinca secular forest is part of the new World Heritage inscription. However, logging in surrounding primeval forests continues. EuroNatur and Agent Green call on the Romanian Government to take protection of primeval forests seriously.

Brutal logging of primeval beech-fir forest less than 500 meters upstream of the designated UNESCO site Sinca secular forest.

Majestic primeval beech forest in upper Stramba valley, close to the UNESCO listed Sinca secular forest (photography taken in July 2016). This paradise forest stand is not existing any more, it was logged (“thinned”) recently, despite NGO-complaints calling on authorities and the Government.

Heavy logging in the heart of Domogled national park, also at the borders of the new UNESCO World Heritage Area “Iauna Craiove”. The images (screenshot from Governmental website “Forest Inspector”) shows the number plates of trucks transporting the timber out of the valley. The logged forest is largely identical with the primeval stands inside the reserve. In Domogled national park huge areas of paradise forests are not included in the strictly protected zone.

Romania Auctions Paradise Forests in Domogled National Park for Logging

May 19, 2017Cerna, destruction, domogled, logging, national park, Natura 2000, primary forest, romania, RomsilvaWoodland

Romania’s state forestry agency, Romsilva, has auctioned an old growth forest with an average age of 210 years for exploitation right in the heart of Domogled – Cerna Valley National Park. Ironically, Romsilva is also in charge of national park management.

This extremely valuable and biodiversity rich forest with many very old trees should have been included in the park’s non-intervention area, the Romanian NGO Agent Green stated. Local farmers took out only selected branches for fire wood. They respected the very old trees and did not cut them. Therefore this forest is an example of low impact farming and coexistence of small scale farming and close to nature forests. Commercial logging plans of Romsilva would eliminate this unique cultural and natural area.

Just a few weeks ago, environmentalists raised the alarm because Romsilva had issued permission to log a primary forest in the upper Cerna valley. The forest is also located in the heart of the national park, in an almost untouched side valley – amidst large, intact ancient beech forests.

Ciprian Pahonţu, the director of Romsilva, has recently given a commitment to Agent Green to increase the non-intervention areas in forests of national parks. However, logging is allowed in more than 50% of the park, and each new logging operation in primary forest will justify new “conservation cutting” in the centuries to come. The current non-intervention zone of the park includes large unproductive alpine areas above the tree line, and many of the parks natural forests lack protection and are progressively being destroyed.

According to criteria by the international nature conservation organisation IUCN national parks should have non interventions zones of at least 75% of its territory.

Domogled – Valea Cernei is a designated EU Natura 2000 site, which says, that “Member States shall take appropriate steps to avoid, in the special areas of conservation, the deterioration of natural habitats and the habitats of species as well as disturbance of the species for which the areas have been designated, in so far as such disturbance could be significant in relation to the objectives of this Directive.” Progessive logging of large areas of primary forests is cleary a “significant disturbance”.

In the entire national park numerous primary and old growth forest parcels have been opened for logging in the recent years. Before the loggers entered, many of these forests met the criteria for virgin forests as defined by the Governmental protocols. It is obvious that these highly valuable forests do not currently have any protection status, despite the fact that they are in a national park and a Natura 2000 site.

Agent Green claims that the exploitation of old growth and primary forests – in particular in national parks – is a deliberate and irreversible ecological crime. Thus the Romanian Ministry of Environment must hold Romsilva accountable for the damage they have so far made and immediately prevent it from proceeding with and further primary and old growth forest destruction.