The State of Domestic Forests Remains Alarming
The federal ministry of agriculture and forestry has published the 2024 forest condition survey, revealing that four out of five trees still show signs of damage. The situation has not significantly improved compared to the previous year, despite a milder climate in 2024. Firs, spruces, beeches and oaks continue to suffer from the long-term effects of drought and above-average temperatures since 2018.
Since the surveys began in 1984, the proportion of visible leaf or needle loss, also known as crown thinning, has increased for all tree species. The most significant changes were observed in 2019 and the overall damage level has remained high since then, with only minor changes compared to the previous year. There have been no significant improvements in the forest condition, but neither has there been a significant deterioration compared to 2023.
The fir, for example, has seen a decline in the proportion of severe crown thinning from 43% to 39%. Forty percent of the fir trees are on the warning level and 21% have no visible damage, a slight increase from 17% in the previous year. The average crown thinning has decreased from 28.6% to 27.2%.
The spruce has maintained the same level of severe crown thinning at 24%. The proportion of warning-level trees has increased to 56% from 53% the previous year, while the proportion without visible damage has decreased to 20% from 23%. The average crown thinning has increased slightly to 22.5% from 22.3%.
The beech has also maintained the same level of severe crown thinning at 46%. The proportion of warning-level trees has decreased to 36% from 39% the previous year, while the proportion without visible damage has increased to 18% from 15%. The average crown thinning remains unchanged at 28.5%.
The oak is the worst affected, with an increase in severe crown thinning from 44% to 51%. The proportion of warning-level trees has decreased to 33% from 39% the previous year, while the proportion without visible damage has decreased to 16% from 17%. The average crown thinning has increased to 29.3% from 27.6%.
Minister Alois Rainer said, “The tree crowns are a seismograph for the condition of the trees. And the view from above into the tree crowns shows: our forests have chronic stress. I see this in my own forest just like everywhere in the country. Heat, drought and pests continue to set our forests back. Only one in five trees still carries a full canopy.”
“We need healthy, stable forests for the generations to come” Rainer added. “That’s why the federal government is supporting the forest owners, rather than burdening them with unnecessary bureaucracy. We invest in reforestation and forest conversion, in research and knowledge transfer and strengthen sustainable forest management: ‘Forest use and forest conversion are active climate protection’.