Planning and regulation of pre-final cuttings in Poland – a proposal for change

• Main Authors: Borecki Tomasz, Pieniak Dariusz, Stępień Edward, Wójcik Roman
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sciendo 2017-12-01
• Series: Folia Forestalia Polonica: Series A - Forestry
• Subjects: forest management plan; planning and regulation; pre-final and final cuttings; incidental cutting
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1515/ffp-2017-0028

Scheduling and regulation of the forest use are of much importance in forest management. Decisions regarding the manner, timing, and intensity of tree felling result in long-term effects, as these affect the species and age structure of forests, along with the direction and dynamics of changes in forest resources. Above all, serious doubts concern the way of determining and accounting for the prescribed forest utilization, and in particular, the possibilities of the pre-final cuttings. In recent times, the precise determination of the pre-final cuttings by volume has been given up. According to the law, the area of pre-final cuttings is now obligatory taken into account. Consequently, it is not possible to determine the total volume limiting the amount of timber to be harvested, thus, there is decreased the value of the forest management plan as the document approved by the minister responsible for forestry as well as the basis for forest management. For practical reasons, the specified pre-final cuttings by volume are considered as indicative.