While agriculture quiets down in the fall, forest work, although tasks occur all year round, is considered classic winter work that many will start doing in the coming weeks. After years in which a lot of damaged wood was accumulated due to heavy bark beetle infestation, 2024 has so far been considered a relatively stable year. In the first few months, damaged wood arose due to broken snow and storms: It was consistently processed, which brought a lot of damaged wood onto the market in a relatively short period of time and moderately depressed prices in the second and third quarters. However, there was no large-scale damage to wood due to bark beetle infestation this year: their growth was dampened by a cold snap in the second half of April. The heavy rainfall in the fall also helped. “Nevertheless, three generations have developed this year, and the risk is still present in pure spruce stands,” said Franz Waldenberger, President of the Upper Austrian Chamber of Agriculture, on Wednesday at a press conference in Linz.
The price development is mixed: “The prices for spruce logs in grades B/C are currently between 102 and 105 euros per cubic meter,” said Franz Kepplinger, chairman of the Upper Austrian Rural Forest Owners’ Association, as an example. This means that the level has leveled off before the crisis and the costs for foresters have increased. At peak times, up to 125 euros were achieved for round timber; in the previous year the price had partially fallen to around 90 euros. At the same time, the costs for foresters have increased. The timber industry is also currently feeling the effects of the weakening economy and the crisis in construction; according to industry representatives, demand is partly weak. In the hardwood segment it can currently be seen that good qualities are in good demand, but poor qualities are under pressure. “Sales are not good, but it helps that there is not that much wood on the market at the moment,” said Kepplinger.
Forest area grows by 300 hectares every year
As reported, the planned EU deforestation regulation led to disagreements among farmers this year: This is intended to prevent products (wood, soy, beef) from coming onto the European market for the production of which deforestation occurred, the planned start was January 1, 2025. There are plans to report obligations in an EU database for anyone who wants to place these products on the market in the EU. At the beginning of October, the EU Commission announced that it would postpone the entry into force by twelve months. “The goal of preventing illegal deforestation is respectable. But Austria is not at risk here anyway because we have a very strict forestry law,” said Waldenberger. Austria’s forest area is growing by 300 hectares every year. He is now hoping for a revision of the regulation so that there should be a division of countries into different risk categories: “For countries with low risk, there should be no obligation to register, but rather simplified documentation requirements, as they already apply in Austria.” The implementation must be technically feasible.
“}”>
Image: LKÖÖ
Source: Nachrichten
