Forestry Minister presents forest status report for NRW
Forestry Minister Silke Gorißen (CDU) is presenting the Forest Condition Report 2023 for North Rhine-Westphalia in Düsseldorf today. Drought, fires and beetle infestation have taken their toll on the forests in recent years. The forest report for 2022 gave little cause for optimism. According to the report, only 28 percent of all trees examined were still completely healthy and showed no loss of leaves or needles. 38 percent of forest trees showed severe damage in 2022.
A glimmer of hope for the trees could now be that there were fewer forest fires in this comparatively wet summer. A spokesperson for Wald und Holz NRW said at the beginning of October that the number and extent of fires in the forests had been lower than in previous years.
In September, Minister Gorißen announced bonuses for the reforestation of dead forest areas. The aim is to promote the establishment of climate-stable mixed forests.
More than a quarter of the NRW state area is covered with forest. Of this, 63 percent is privately owned. According to the 2022 report, NRW has around 935,000 hectares of forest. It consists of 58 percent deciduous trees, mostly beech and oak. Conifers, mainly spruce, grow on 42 percent of the forest area.
The condition of the forest has been recorded in the Forest Condition Report since 1984. The tree crowns reflect the vitality of forest trees. The loss of leaves and needles in particular is assessed according to a standardized nationwide procedure.
The Forestry Minister's report highlighted the need for forest recovery, as only 28% of examined trees were completely healthy in 2023. To mitigate environmental issues, the Minister announced incentives for reforestation, focusing on the establishment of climate-resilient mixed forests.
Source: www.dpa.com
