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A report on deforestation was every nine minutes. This is the average figure for 2020. The reports referred to the logging of a total of 274,000 hectares, an area close to the size of Blekinge.
In a series of articles, DN examines the Swedish forest industry and, among other things, has discussed protests by Sami and environmental and tourism organizations against the logging of ancient forests in Norrbotten. In this part, we go to the Swedish Forestry Agency, the authority responsible for overseeing that forestry companies and private owners comply with the law when using the forest.
According to the Forest Conservation Law and the Swedish Forest Agency regulations, forest owners must take into account the sensitive nature and reindeer herding, among other things, not to carry out too large logging, to leave elements of all tree and dead wood species and not destroy reindeer herding. . But so far, Sweden has not reached the environmental goal of living forests or the goal of rich flora and fauna: thousands of species are threatened by forestry.
Permission to harvest only required for forests near mountains; in other forests, only a report to the Swedish Forestry Agency is needed. DN can now reveal that an increasing proportion of logging is carried out without any inspector from the Swedish Forest Agency visiting the forest lands.
The proportion and number of field visits has steadily decreased both before and after logging: in 2011, planned logging was visited in 9% of cases; last year, 4%. In the same year, 15 percent of the completed fellings were inspected on site; last year, less than 1 percent.
About 200 administrators work with cases in local offices across the country.
– Most registrations go through the system fairly quickly. We try to prioritize who we visit. It is largely based on our forest policy: freedom under responsibility. My image is that forestry companies want to do the right thing, says Åsa Lundberg, responsible for the development of supervision at the Swedish Forestry Agency.
According to the CEO of the Swedish Forestry Agency, Herman Sundqvist, who was previously the forest manager of Sveaskog, more and more remote monitoring is possible thanks to technical development.
– We are using more and more digital imaging material that is getting better and allowing more work to be done indoors behind the computer.
Every 10th processing it happens completely automatically. Deforestation notifications in map form are digitally verified against the authority’s record of cultural and ancient monuments, protected natural areas, reindeer herding, areas that have been inventoried and where valuable swamps, streams, occurrences of species such as nesting eagles or others have been found.
– If a report “flows”, it is because it does not collide or overlap the areas where we have information about the other parts. In that way, we have examined it, says Herman Sundqvist.
The Swedish Forestry Agency’s 2018 annual report states that the proportion of logging reports that were visited in the field prior to logging “decreased dramatically, from 6.2 percent to 4.4 percent.” The latest annual report does not mention the further reduction. According to Sundqvist, what the authority decides to report varies from year to year.
Is there anything you can only discover if you are physically in place?
– Yes of course. Occurrences of various species that are small and difficult to identify. Vegetation, such as the presence of lichens in the ground that are important for reindeer feeding, is such that we are currently struggling to discover digitally, he says and continues:
– You may also wonder why the police are not carrying out more speed checks. It’s all about prioritization and balance. Over time, the Swedish Forestry Agency’s allocation decreases; there is an expectation of constant efficiency and I, as head of authority, am responsible for that.
Herman Sundqvist, CEO of the Swedish Forestry Agency.
Photography: Patrik Svedberg / Skogsstyrelsen.
Lena Gustafsson, professor emerita at SLU, researches biodiversity and nature conservation in the forest. She questions whether digital tools and aerial photography can replace field visits.
– There is a high risk that forests with high natural values will be lost. Even a forest that may appear very homogeneous in Norrland may have high natural values, with a long continuity where it has not been logged.
Tord Snäll, a professor of ecology at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SLU, reacts to the reduced field visits shown by DN’s review.
– Clearly not good.
He emphasizes that the Swedish Forest Agency will now also stop inventorying key biotopes, areas with high natural values where there is a great chance of finding species on the red list and which may not be logged according to FSC certification rules. The issue has long been promoted by forest owners associations and the Swedish Farmers Association, and was a demand from the Center Party to celebrate the January agreement.
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Photo: Anette Nantell
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Photo: Anette Nantell
– Combined with the fact that you will work less with inventory, it is especially bad that field visits are reduced. This increases the risk that more and more populations with high natural values will be collected, says Tord Snäll.
He questions the explanation that technological development has made it possible to speed up field visits more and more.
– I am surprised that the Swedish Forestry Agency says that. I have not seen any study that establishes that automated inspection methods are as effective in identifying land worth protecting as field visits. I’d say it’s just a hypothesis.
The Swedish Forestry Agency is right Decide on court injunctions and logging bans in areas where the authority considers that environmental considerations should be taken into account.
The number of decisions has varied between 30 and 450 during the last decade. In the last two years, the number of decisions has decreased, especially the reduced decisions on the protection of species.
If the owner of a forest makes a mistake, how much risk does he or she take by going there?
– I don’t know if it can be judged. Previously, we verified satellite imagery to capture unreported logging. There will be a number each year, says Åsa Lundberg from the Swedish Forestry Agency.
Every year, the Swedish Forestry Agency submits prosecution reports to prosecutors as forest owners are suspected of breaking the law. Last year, there were 45 indictments, a total of about 600 in the last decade. If the reports lead to a prosecution or trial, the Swedish Forestry Agency does not know because there is no follow-up.
