Forests and forest-relevant policies in Europe face a wide array of challenges in a rapidly changing world. Issues such as Brexit, the new European Parliament and European Commission, and the recent European Green Deal proposal are certain to affect policymaking, as are the as-yet unknown impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19). A new science-policy study from EFI provides a timely look at forest governance in Europe, and offers insights into the potential way forward. Many of the forest-relevant policies currently in place have been targeted towards 2020, and while a final evaluation of their achievements is not yet possible, a look into the future is essential. Forest products and services are increasingly an inherent and integrated element of many other sectors, ranging from energy to food production to conservation and public health. This wide range of sectors and multiple interests, at different levels, leads to a complex multi-sectoral governance system. For example, within the EU, negotiations are currently ongoing on post-2020 EU policies on agriculture and rural development, biodiversity, climate, industry, food security, circular economy and new legislation on sustainable finance. All of them, and the EU Green Deal in particular, will have an important influence on forest-related decision-making processes. A strategic and coordinated policy direction will be required after 2020, not least to support the implementation of globally agreed policy targets such as the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement and Convention on Biological Diversity. In the global policy arena, trade developments related eg to China, Russia and North America will also have important implications for the European forest sector. This report reviews significant developments in the forest governance framework including EU and international developments, and discusses how coordination in other policy areas than forests can lead to policy integration. Based on evidence from a literature review, stakeholder interviews and workshop results, it outlines several potential pathways for future forest policymaking in Europe. Study coordinator Bernhard Wolfslehner said: "The European Green Deal puts the forest-based sector in a key position in climate change mitigation and biodiversity protection, and it is therefore important to emphasize forest policy integration and strengthen its implementation."
Forests and forest-relevant policies in Europe face a wide array of challenges in a rapidly changing world. Issues such as Brexit, the new European Parliament and European Commission, and the recent European Green Deal proposal are certain to affact policymaking, as are the as-yet unknown impacts of the coronavirus /COVID-19). A new science-policy study from EFI provides a timely look at forest governance in Europe, and offers insights into the potential way forward. Many of the forest-relevant policies currently in place have been targeted towards 2020, and while a final evaluation of their achievements is not yet possible, a look into the future is essential. Forest products and services are increasingly an inherent and integrated element of many other sectors, ranging from energy to food production to conseravtion and public health. This wide range of sectors and multiple interests, at different levels, leads to a complex multi-sectoral governance system. For example, within the EU, negaotiations are currently ongoing on post-2020 EU policies on agriculture and rural development, biodiversity, climate, industry, food security, circular economy and new legislation on sustainable finance. All of them, and the EU Green Deal in particular, will have an important influence on forest-related decision-making processes. A strategic and coordinated policy direction will be required after 2020, not least to support the implementation of globally agreed policy targets such as the SDGs, the Paris Climate Agreement and CBD. In the global policy arena, trade developments related to eg China, Russia and Northamerica will also have important implications for the European forest sector. This report reviews significant developments in the forest governance framework including EU and international developments, and discusses how coordination in other policy areas than forests can to to policy integration. Based on evidence from a literature review, stakeholder interviews and workshop results, it outlines several potential pathways for future fore policymaking in Europe.
This paper analyses the occurrence of governance innovations for forest ecosystem service (FES) provision in the forestry sector in Europe and the factors that influence innovation development. Based on a European-wide online survey, public and private forest owners and managers representing different property sizes indicate what type of governance innovation activities they engage in, and why. To investigate forestry innovations as systems, the analysis focuses on biophysical, social and technical factors influencing innovation development. The results of our exploratory quantitative analysis show that most innovation activities identified are largely oriented towards biomass production. Accordingly, most forest owners implement efficiency-driven optimisation strategies for forest management and technological improvement for provisioning service supply, to generate income. In contrast, the provision of regulating and cultural services is not yet a prominent part of forestry innovation activities.Reasons are rooted in a market-oriented economic rationale focusing on timber production, a lack of financial resources to compensate for other FES provisions or institutions to provide backup and security to forest owners and managers for engaging in innovation development. Given that the provision of a wide range of FES is a politically well-established objective for forest management in Europe, a strategy is needed that helps to align actors and sectors for supporting and co-financing related forest management approaches and business models. The current revision of the forest related policy framework on EU level under the EU Green deal poses a window of opportunity for better fostering novel governance approaches for more sustainable FES provision.
Highlights • Sustainable provision of FES require a system- and innovation-based perspective. • Most innovation activities are characterised by optimisation strategies for biomass provision. • Lacking resources and institutions prevent foresters to engage in innovation activities. • New forms of communication, cooperation and financing are needed for providing non-wood FES. • Current revisions of EU policy frameworks pose possibilities for novel forms of FES governance. ; This paper analyses the occurrence of governance innovations for forest ecosystem service (FES) provision in the forestry sector in Europe and the factors that influence innovation development. Based on a European-wide online survey, public and private forest owners and managers representing different property sizes indicate what type of governance innovation activities they engage in, and why. To investigate forestry innovations as systems, the analysis focuses on biophysical, social and technical factors influencing innovation development. The results of our exploratory quantitative analysis show that most innovation activities identified are largely oriented towards biomass production. Accordingly, most forest owners implement efficiency-driven optimisation strategies for forest management and technological improvement for provisioning service supply, to generate income. In contrast, the provision of regulating and cultural services is not yet a prominent part of forestry innovation activities. Reasons are rooted in a market-oriented economic rationale focusing on timber production, a lack of financial resources to compensate for other FES provisions or institutions to provide backup and security to forest owners and managers for engaging in innovation development. Given that the provision of a wide range of FES is a politically well-established objective for forest management in Europe, a strategy is needed that helps to align actors and sectors for supporting and co-financing related forest management approaches and business models. The current revision of the forest related policy framework on EU level under the EU Green deal poses a window of opportunity for better fostering novel governance approaches for more sustainable FES provision.
The EU Water Framework Directive aims to ensure restoration of Europe's water bodies to "good ecological status" by 2027. Many Member States will struggle to meet this target, with around half of EU river catchments currently reporting below standard water quality. Diffuse pollution from agriculture represents a major pressure, affecting over 90% of river basins. Accumulating evidence shows that recent improvements to agricultural practices are benefiting water quality but in many cases will be insufficient to achieve WFD objectives. There is growing support for land use change to help bridge the gap, with a particular focus on targeted tree planting to intercept and reduce the delivery of diffuse pollutants to water. This form of integrated catchment management offers multiple benefits to society but a significant cost to landowners and managers. New economic instruments, in combination with spatial targeting, need to be developed to ensure cost effective solutions – including tree planting for water benefits - are realised. Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) are flexible, incentive-based mechanisms that could play an important role in promoting land use change to deliver water quality targets. The PESFOR-W COST Action will consolidate learning from existing woodlands for water PES schemes in Europe and help standardize approaches to evaluating the environmental effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of woodland measures. It will also create a European network through which PES schemes can be facilitated, extended and improved, for example by incorporating other ecosystem services linking with aims of the wider forests-carbon policy nexus.
In: Valatin , G , Abildtrup , J , Accastello , C , Said Al-Tawaha , A R M , Andreucci , M-B , Atanasova , S , Avdibegović , M , Baksic , N , Banasik , K , Barquin , J , Barstad , J , Bastakova , V , Becirovic , D , Begueria , S , Bethers , U , Bihunova , M , Blagojevic , B , Bösch , M , Bournaris , T , Cao , Y , Carvalho-Santos , C , Chikalanov , A , A. Cunha e Sá , M , Czyżyk , K , Daly , H , Davies , H , Del Campo , A , de Groot , R , De Vreese , R , Dostál , T , El Mokaddem , A , Finér , L , Evans , R , Fiquepron , J , Frac , M , Futter , M , Garcia , S , Gatto , P , Geneletti , D , Gezik , V , Giupponi , C , González-Sanchís , M , Gordillo , F , Gorriz , E , Grigorova , Y , Heinsoo , K , Hochbichler , E , Högbom , L , Image , M , Jacobsen , J B , Japelj , A , Jelic , S , Junk , J , Juhasz , C , Kagalou , I , Kelly-Quinn , M , Klamerus-Iwan , A , Kluvankova , T , Koeck , R , Konovska , I , Krajter Ostoic , S , Krc , J , Lavnyy , V , Leonardi , A , Libiete , Z , Little , D , Lo Porto , A , Loukas , A , Lyubenova , M I , Maric , B , Martínez-López , J , Martinez , I , Maxim , A , Metslaid , M , Melvin , A , Costică , M , Mincev , I , Morkvenas , Z , Nevenic , R , Nisbet , T , O'hUallachain , D , Olschewski , R , Östberg , J , Oszust , K , Ovando , P , Paletto , A , Parpan , T , Pettenella , D , Pezdevšek Malovrh , Š , Planinšek , Š , Podlipná , R , Posavec , S , Potočki , K , Prokofieva , I , Quinteiro , P , Radocz , L , Ristic , R , Robert , N , Rugani , B , Sabanovic , J , Sarvasova , Z , Savoska , S , Schleppi , P , Schueler , G , Shannon , M , Silgram , M , Srdjevic , B , Stefan , G , Stijovic , A , Strange , N , Tattari , S , Teofilovski , A , Termansen , M , Thorsen , B J , Toth , A , Trebs , I , Tmušić , N , Vasiliades , L , Vedel , S E , Ventrubová , K , Vuletic , D , Winkel , G , Yao , R , Young , S , Yousefpour , R , Zahvoyska , L , Zhang , D , Zhou , J & Žižková , E 2017 , ' PESFOR-W : improving the design and environmental effectiveness of woodlands for water payments for ecosystem services ' , Research Ideas and Outcomes , vol. 3 , e13828 . https://doi.org/10.3897/rio.3.e13828
The EU Water Framework Directive aims to ensure restoration of Europe's water bodies to "good ecological status" by 2027. Many Member States will struggle to meet this target, with around half of EU river catchments currently reporting below standard water quality. Diffuse pollution from agriculture represents a major pressure, affecting over 90% of river basins. Accumulating evidence shows that recent improvements to agricultural practices are benefiting water quality but in many cases will be insufficient to achieve WFD objectives. There is growing support for land use change to help bridge the gap, with a particular focus on targeted tree planting to intercept and reduce the delivery of diffuse pollutants to water. This form of integrated catchment management offers multiple benefits to society but a significant cost to landowners and managers. New economic instruments, in combination with spatial targeting, need to be developed to ensure cost effective solutions – including tree planting for water benefits - are realised. Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) are flexible, incentive-based mechanisms that could play an important role in promoting land use change to deliver water quality targets. The PESFOR-W COST Action will consolidate learning from existing woodlands for water PES schemes in Europe and help standardize approaches to evaluating the environmental effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of woodland measures. It will also create a European network through which PES schemes can be facilitated, extended and improved, for example by incorporating other ecosystem services linking with aims of the wider forests-carbon policy nexus. ; The EU Water Framework Directive aims to ensure restoration of Europe's water bodies to "good ecological status" by 2027. Many Member States will struggle to meet this target, with around half of EU river catchments currently reporting below standard water quality. Diffuse pollution from agriculture represents a major pressure, affecting over 90% of river basins. Accumulating evidence shows that recent improvements to agricultural practices are benefiting water quality but in many cases will be insufficient to achieve WFD objectives. There is growing support for land use change to help bridge the gap, with a particular focus on targeted tree planting to intercept and reduce the delivery of diffuse pollutants to water. This form of integrated catchment management offers multiple benefits to society but a significant cost to landowners and managers. New economic instruments, in combination with spatial targeting, need to be developed to ensure cost effective solutions – including tree planting for water benefits - are realised. Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) are flexible, incentive-based mechanisms that could play an important role in promoting land use change to deliver water quality targets. The PESFOR-W COST Action will consolidate learning from existing woodlands for water PES schemes in Europe and help standardize approaches to evaluating the environmental effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of woodland measures. It will also create a European network through which PES schemes can be facilitated, extended and improved, for example by incorporating other ecosystem services linking with aims of the wider forests-carbon policy nexus.