The EU and forests

Forest relevant policy encompasses the forest sector policy domain. Although this has largely remained the competency of the EU member states, it has also seen repeated activities at EU level. The EU Forest Strategy sets general guidelines for EU forest policy. It also aims to coordinate other EU forest-related policies. The strategy recalls key principles related to sustainable forest management (SFM) and addresses a number of topics that include competitiveness and job creation, forest protection and the delivery of forest ecosystem services, striving for a multifunctional approach. The Strategy is based the notion of subsidiarity and a shared responsibility between the EU and its Member States. Its impact is hampered by its lacking legal liability and no direct connection to EU financial policy instruments.

Moreover, the forest-based sector covers large ground, ranging from policies affecting the basic conditions of forests and forest management to the various value chains related to forest ecosystem services and the broader societal, economic and ecologic environment these value chains are situated within. This makes an assessment of the forest-focused European policy framework challenging. Not only is the forest-focused European policy framework per se complex, but policies go well beyond the comfort zone of familiar forest sector policies, ranging, for instance, into industrial, social and international trade policy spheres. Forest-based products and services are an integral component of multiple sectors. These sectors are interconnected in various ways though value chains, which implies that the importance of different policies vary significantly depending on the respective product and service.

Find out more about EU forest-relevant policy through some of my publications:

You can also find out a bit more about the different types of EU policy documents in my EU Policy Dictionary.