The Natura 2000 network, which is one of the largest networks of protected areas in the world, is the core pillar in the European Union's biodiversity conservation policy. To achieve the national enforcement of Natura 2000 and to overcome implementation problems, effective policy measures are needed, and participation among different stakeholders is required. The aim of this paper was to evaluate the process of formulation of the Natura 2000 Management Program (2015-2020) in Slovenia based on a set of criteria and indicators for the evaluation of a participatory process, and to present the differences between the stakeholders' evaluations according to their role in the implementation process. For that purpose, stakeholders were divided into two groups' stakeholders from project partner's institution, and others. The research was done in two steps: First, in-depth semi-structured interviews with 17 representatives of the key stakeholders' institutions or organizations that were involved in the formulation of the Natura 2000 Management Program were carried out ; in the second, a survey with 266 stakeholders involved in the formulation and decision-making process was conducted. Overall, the results show that the participatory process was well organized, independent and fair ; however, not all of the requisite conditions for successful participation were fulfilled, as was shown with the sub-criteria of transparency. The only difference between the groups exists in the evaluations of the sub-criteria transparency of the process. The group of stakeholders from the project's partner institutions were more satisfied with the transparency of the process, as the average value was 3.36, compared to the others where the average value of satisfaction was 2.80. This indicates the need for an improved, novel, and innovative approach that leads to multi-level governance.
AbstractOne of the paramount challenges in natural resource management revolves around the delicate equilibrium between the demand for and the supply of diverse Ecosystem Services (ESs) within a cultural landscape. Recognizing the centrality of cultural landscapes to human well-being, the sustainability of these landscapes hinges upon the health and stability of ecosystems that can effectively provide the required ESs. Over the long term, the sustainable supply of ESs is constrained by the potential supply of ESs. Understanding the potential supply of ESs is crucial for averting compromises to the ecosystems within a landscape. This article introduces a novel perspective on evaluating the ESs of a landscape by means of efficiency analysis. Instead of presenting the potential supply of ESs in absolute terms, we offer a comparative analysis of ESs' relative supply to associated management costs. In principle, the efficiency of Landscape Units (LUs) is defined as the ratio of the potential supply of multiple ESs to the costs associated with land use and land cover management. The resultant efficiency maps serve as hot and cold spot maps, revealing efficient ecosystem compositions that yield multiple ESs. This composition reflects management efforts, incorporating various management costs. Forests emerge as pivotal ecosystems in landscapes, delivering the most ESs at the lowest costs. These efficiency maps offer valuable insights for regional planners, enabling them to enhance the supply of ES in inefficient LUs by studying the ecosystem structure and associated costs of the most efficient LUs.
Stakeholder participation has become an important driving force in policy decision-making and implementation, particularly in the nature conservation sector, where complex interactions and conflict of interest between stakeholders are common. A stakeholder analysis, which was complemented with a social network analysis, was used to examine the cooperation and conflict network between stakeholders, their institutions, and sectors in the case of the formulation of the Natura 2000 Management programme in Slovenia for the period 2015-2020 (PUN). Using data from a web survey (n = 167), cooperation and conflict networks were analysed while using degree centrality, indegree centrality, betweenness centrality, and blockmodeling. The results of the stakeholder analysis showed that the highest number of stakeholders that are involved in the participatory process of PUN was from the forestry and hunting sector, followed by the agriculture and nature conservation sector. The results of the cooperation network showed that the network is highly centralized, with only few institutions taking a central position in the PUN process (Institute for Nature Conservation, Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, and the Slovenian Forest Service). Moreover, the nature conservation sector was, on average, a sector with the highest concentration of power. In addition, in the cooperation network, which was fragmented across sectors, there were institutions that belonged to the same sector, which tended to cooperate with each other. The analysis of the conflict network showed that institutions with a central position in the cooperation network also had a central role in the conflict network. In addition, conflicts between institutions more frequently appeared among institutions from different sectors. The exceptions were institutions from the fishery and water sector, as this sector seemed to have many conflicts within it. Based on a blockmodeling, four groups of institutions were identified according to their cooperation network (core institutions, semi-core institutions, semi-periphery institutions, and periphery institutions). Our finding suggested that the participatory process of formulating PUN needs to be improved in such a way that in the future various stakeholders, especially excluded local ones, are more actively involved and a balance of the power between the stakeholders involved achieved.
Klimatske promjene su jedan od najvećih izazova za postizanje ciljeva održivog razvoja. Formiranje odgovarajućih institucionalnih okvira za upravljanje klimatskim promjenama, koji uključuju i koordiniraju brojne interese i aktivnosti različitih aktera, razina i sektora, problem je i za zemlje jugoistočne Europe. Bosna i Hercegovina (BiH), Hrvatska, Slovenija i Srbija imaju značajne prirodne resurse koji su bili ugroženi proteklih godina zbog prirodnih katastrofa, što je utjecalo i na sektor šumarstva. Cilj rada je proučiti institucionalne okvire u šumarstvu i zaštiti prirode, kao i stavove ispitanika o kompetencijama relevantnih institucija i organizacija, identificirati potrebe za poboljšanjem postojećeg okvira i ocijeniti njihove interese i utjecaje u procesu upravljanja klimatskim promjenama. Prikupljanje podataka provedeno je korištenjem intervjua, u razdoblju od studenog 2016. do travnja 2017. godine. Protokol za intervju sastojao se od 22 pitanja podijeljenih u pet skupina. U svrhu ovoga rada analizirani su odgovori na pitanja u vezi s institucionalnim okvirima za upravljanje klimatskim promjenama u šumarstvu i zaštiti prirode. Uzorak je činilo 29 ispitanika (Federacija BiH-8, Hrvatska-6, Slovenija-5, Srbija-10), odnosno predstavnika javnih uprava i javnih službi u šumarstvu i zaštiti prirode, poduzeća i ustanova za gospodarenje državnim šumama i upravljanje zaštićenim područjima, obrazovnih i istraživačkih organizacija te organizacija civilnog sektora. Ispitanici su odabrani probnim uzorkovanjem (uzorak na bazi vrijednosnog suda). Ispitanici su bili predstavnici institucija i organizacija na nacionalnoj razini upravljanja u šumarstvu i zaštiti prirode, koji su izravno ili neizravno povezani s problematikom klimatskih promjena u odabranim oblastima. O postojećim institucionalnim okvirima, 52,4% ispitanika nema pozitivno mišljenje, a 85,7% se zalaže za njihovo unapređenje, u smislu poboljšanja suradnje i koordinacije između različitih sektora, institucija i organizacija. Značajne su razlike u procjeni interesa i utjecaja institucija i organizacija u upravljanju klimatskim promjenama među ispitanicima iz Slovenije i Hrvatske, kao i onima iz Federacije BiH i Srbije. Ispitanici iz područja zaštite prirode procjenjuju da je interes veći u odnosu na predstavnike šumarskog sektora (ispitanici iz područja zaštite prirode smatraju da je interes "veoma visok" – prosječna ocjena 4,6, a iz sektora šumarstva da je "visok" – prosječna ocjena 4,1). Potrebna su daljnja istraživanja o suradnji i koordinaciji svih sudionika na različitim razinama upravljanja, kao i drugih elemenata koji, uz institucionalne okvire, dovode do stvaranja odgovornog sustava upravljanja klimatskim promjenama i rješavanja različitih izazova klimatskih promjena. ; Global environmental and ecological problems such as climate change and other related issues (e.g. biodiversity losses) do not recognize state boundaries. Therefore, intentions to address these problems require a multi-actor, multi-sector and multilevel approach. The concept that enables joint effort against these problems implies an active participation of all stakeholders, establishes the rules for shared responsibilities and strives to make efficient and effective procedures for addressing these issues is known as "governance" (Mutabdžija, 2012).Climate change and occurance of extreme events are presenting a threat to the natural resources, exposing the vulnerabilities of current resource governance regimes, including also forestry and nature conservation. The occurance of extreme events in last several years thretened the natural resources and impacted the forestry sector in all four selected countries of Southeast Europe (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, and Slovenia). This has provided a further arguments for understanding the institutional framework for climate change governance in forestry and nature conservation as important element in dealing with uncertanties posed by the climate change challenges on natural resources.Hence, the aim of the paper is to examine the institutional frameworks of forestry and nature conservation, as well as the attitudes of respondents about the competences of the relevant institutions and organizations, to identify the need to improve the existing framework and to evaluate their interests and impacts in climate change governance.In this research were used individual, structured interviews as a research technique in collecting the primary data. The questionnaire consisted of 22 questions, divided into 5 groups. For the purposes of this paper, responses to questions related to institutional frameworks for climate change governance in forestry and nature conservation are analyzed. The sample consisted of 29 representatives (Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina – 8, Croatia – 6, Serbia – 10, Slovenia – 5) from public administrations and services in forestry and nature conservation, enterprises and organization for forest and protected area management, educational and research organizations, and non-governmental organizations. The respondents were selected by judgemental sampling. Current institutional framework for climate change governance comprises of various institutions and organizations in all analyzed countries (Table 1). In selected countries, there is a clear division of responsibilities between public administration institutions in forestry and nature conservation (these institutions are directly or indirectly are related to forestry). There is a number of common primary objectives within the given competencies common to the same organizational category (Table 2), in all four countries. Despite current institutional and organizational variaty and competency alignment between different institutions and organizations, there is a need for further improvement of institutional framework for climate change governance through cooperation and coordination, accross different sectors, institutions and organizations, as stated by the respondents attittudes (Table 3 and 4). Respondents attitudes towards the interest and influence of institutions/organizations on climate change governance are mostly showing a visible interest but indicating challenges in providing suitable inflluence (Table 5). Also, visible discrepancy in assessment of the interest and influence of institutions and organizations on climate change governance is between the respondents from Slovenia and Croatia at one side and respondents from Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia at the other side, indicates differences in inclusion of climate change challenges accross different competency levels. Regardless of the category of institutions and organizations, the respondents recognized the importance of the investigated issues and they assessed its interest as "high" and "very high" (Table 6).Further development of suitable institutional frameworks for climate change governance in forestry and nature conservation needs additional attention especially in the field of multilevel coordination between different actors and their activities, as well as the acknowledgment of potentially significant influence forestry sector might have in climate change governance.
The importance of renewable energy resources has increased over the last decades due to the European Union renewable energy policy and particularly its climate change mitigation objectives. There is a need to mobilize additional wood resources from private forests in order to meet ambitious renewable energy targets and the demand for wood. Due to the conditions prevailing in privately owned forests in Slovenia and Serbia characterized by a large number of still disorganized private forest owners with fragmented and small-scaled forest properties, wood mobilization strongly depends on owners' organization and cooperation. The purpose of this study is to determine the possibilities for wood mobilization from private forest properties in Serbia and Slovenia, and propose organizational models on this basis and experience from the selected case countries. Surveys were conducted in Slovenia (n=622) and Serbia (n=248) on random samples of private forest owners. Analysis of wood mobilization potentials in Serbia and Slovenia showed that the harvesting intensity in private forests is below the potentials, therefore the preconditions to increase the level of wood mobilization exist. The main obstacles to the increase in the current level of wood mobilization in Serbia are biodiversity and the protective forest function, as well as high acquisition costs, also stated as the main obstacle in Slovenia. Moreover, it appeared that the majority of private forest owners in both countries believe that better logistics and infrastructure and interest association of private forest owners are potential solutions leading to an increase in the level of mobilization. Four models of private forest owner organization are proposed and they take into account the characteristics and attitudes of owners as well as activities in supply chain, including timber sales arrangement, construction and maintenance of forest roads, harvesting, measurement and quality assessment of timber, transportation, invoicing and payments.
This paper examines the level of payment for ecosystem services (PES) concept implementation in the financing of water-related forest ecosystem services (ES) in the Republic of Croatia, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FB&H), the Republic of Slovenia, and the Republic of Serbia. The focus is on water-related forest ES recognised by the millennium ecosystem assessment (MEA). For the purpose of this paper, the term pure PES describes schemes that comply to all five conditions set by Wunder definition and term PES like for those schemes that miss some of those conditions. In the first step, the most important legislative documents related to forests, water, and environmental protection were selected. The second consists of a content analysis ; focusing on the definition of ES ; the definition of fees or payments ; the establishment of 'forest funds', 'water funds', or 'environmental funds' ; and the way these funds were spent. Here we looked at the flow of funding into the forestry sector recognising forest management as the main water-related forest ES provider. Research revealed existence of well-established payments schemes in forestry in Croatia for almost 30 years and in FB&H for some 20 years which were assessed as closest to pure PES. In Serbia and Slovenia, there were no PES or PES like schemes in the forestry sector. In the water sector the well-established PES like payments schemes existing in all four countries. The environmental protection sector, however, rely more on the tax like rather than on the PES like schemes. Legislation in general recognised the link between forests and water, but this was much more evident in the forestry than in the water or environment sector. The role of the state is strongly pronounced in all countries studied, and was the main driving force behind all payments. However, this position of the state represents also the main obstacle for the development of pure PES schemes, together with underdeveloped private forestry and complex socio-economic conditions. Nevertheless, there is room for further development of pure PES and PES like schemes based on EU or global experiences.
Implementation of nature conservation policy follows two main approaches: the segregation approach based on the spatially separation of protected areas from productive areas, and the integration approach based on the integration of productive and conservation purposes. In many cases, the implementation of nature conservation policy has increased conflicts due to different and competing land use principles, interests, and point of views. The aim of this study is to analyse the stakeholders' opinions towards possible conflicts, opportunities and obstacles for human activities, and constraints on forest management related to establishment of a new protected area. The study was structured in three main steps: stakeholder analysis, questionnaire survey, and statistical analysis of the collected data. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered by email to a sample of stakeholders in each county involved in the COST Targeted Network TN1401 "CAPABAL" (41 stakeholders in 10 countries). The data were statistically processed to highlight differences between EU28 member countries and non-EU28 countries, and among groups of interest (public administrations, actors of forest-wood chain, universities and research institutes, environmental Non-Governmental Organizations). The results show that the most common type of conflict is that related to the procedure for the establishment of a new protected area with special regard to property rights restrictions and additional bureaucracy. In addition, the results show that the most important opportunity is for the rural development of the marginal areas with special regard to the eco-tourism development, while the most important obstacle is the decrease of forest management practices (loggings) due to the nature conservation constrains.The stakeholders' point of view is a fundamental starting point to reduce conflicts between nature conservation and human activities and to increase the social acceptance of the nature conservation policy. ; Zadnjih desetljeća, primjena politike zaštite prirode, zasnovane na principima javnog sudjelovanja, postala je jedna od glavnih izazova za znanstvenike i donositelje odluka. Primjena politike očuvanja prirode slijedi dva osnovna pristupa: izdvajanje na osnovi prostorne podjele zaštićenih područja od proizvodnih, i pristup integracije, na temelju kojega se uključuju proizvodne i zaštitne namjene prostora. U mnogo slučajeva primjena politike očuvanja prirode uzrokovala je porast sukoba radi različitih i kompetitivnih principa korištenja zemlje, različitih interesa i pogleda. Cilj istraživanja je analizirati mišljenja stručnjaka o mogućim sukobima, prilikama i teškoćama za ljudske aktivnosti, ograničenjima u gospodarenju šumom vezano na uspostavu novih zaštićenih područja. Istraživanje je strukturirano u tri osnovna koraka: analiza stručnjaka, anketiranje i statistička obrada prikupljenih podataka. Polu-strukturirani upitnik putem emaila poslan je stručnjacima prema planiranom uzorku u svaku zemlju koja je uključena u COST CAPABAL projekt (COST Targeted Network TN1401 "CAPABAL" (41 sudionik u 10 zemalja). Podaci su statistički obrađeni, kako bi se naglasile razlike između EU28 zemalja članica i nečlanica i među institucijama (javna administracija, stručnjaci iz šumarstva i drvne industrije, fakulteta i istraživačkih institucija i okolišnih nevladinih organizacija). Na kraju prikupljanja podataka, sakupljn je 41 upitnik, koji su ispunili stručnjaci podijeljeni na zemlje članice EU (22 upitnika sa udjelom 54% u uzorku), i 19 stručnjaka iz zemalja izvan EU (46%). Promatrajući distribuciju uzorka prema zainteresiranim grupama, 41,5% ispitanika predstavlja javnu administraciju, 29,3% sveučilišta i istraživačke institute, 22% sudjeluje u lancu šuma-drvo, 7,3% su članovi nevladinih okolišnih udruga.Rezultati pokazuju da su najčešće vrste sukoba one koje su vezane za procedure uspostave novih zaštićenih zona, s posebnim naglaskom na ograničenja prava vlasništva i dodatno administriranje. Sudionici iz zemalja koje nisu EU28 članice, više su naglasile važnost ograničenja lovnih aktivnosti kao potencijalni sukob u usporedbi za sudionicima iz EU28 zemalja članica. Vezano na mogućnosti i ograničenja ljudskih aktivnosti u zaštićenim područjima, rezultati su pokazali da je razvoj ekoturizma jedna on najznačajnijih prilika za razvoj ruralnih marginalnih područja. Najveća zapreka je otežano gospodarenja šumom (pridobivanje drva) vezano za zahtjeve očuvanja prirode. Konačno, rezultati pokazuju da na ispitivanom uzorku najveća zabrinutost u gospodarenju šumom su dodatno vrijeme i novac potreban za nadzor i primjenu aktivnosti očuvanja prirode u zaštićenim područjima. Za ispitanike iz EU28 zemalja članica najveća zabrinutost vezano na aktivnosti gospodarenja šumom je primjena aktivnosti očuvanja prirode u zaštićenim područjima, dok su ispitanici izvan EU28 zemalja istaknuli primjenu pesticida kao najvažniju promjenu u gospodarenju šumom.Stavovi stručnjaka su temeljna početna pozicija koju treba uzeti u obzir kako bi se umanjili sukobi između očuvanja prirode i ljudskih aktivnosti te povećala socijalna uključenost u politiku očuvanja prirode.
Even though water-related forest ecosystem services are important for forestry and water management sectors, they have different definitions and are regulated differently in each sector, which makes them poorly recognized. How stakeholders from two main sectors (forestry and water management) perceive the importance of water-related forest ecosystem services, the tradoffs between ecosystem services and the effectiveness and implementation of payments schemes related to forest water ecosystem services were our areas of interest. We have conduct surveys with different groups of stakeholders from both sectors in four selected countries (the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia) with a lot of similarities and the potential to learn from each other. The results show that in spite of the spotted differences among analyzed countries, there is a high level of agreement among respondents on all investigated aspects. In addition, even though different payment schemes exist in three of four countries, stakeholders are rarely aware of their existence, or it is better to say that they do not recognize them as payment schemes for ecosystem services because of their names and definitions, which do not clearly define ecosystem services. Mostly, they use bundled services and non%voluntary payments and are designed and implemented by the states. Due to the strong role of states and the low transparency in the existing schemes, we looked at possible conditions reflected through stakeholders' opinions for overcoming that obstacle for the development of new payment schemes. We found that there is a high level of acceptance of payments schemes as more effective than 'command and control' schemes and of the involvement of other stakeholders in decision-making processes as those conditions that can positively influence development of new payment schemes in all four countries. These results give us hope that in spite of the strong role of the state in selected countries, the role of stakeholders will be more acknowledged and, by that, the future schemes will be more harmonized among the sectors and their goals and needs, contributing to its effectiveness as well.
The complex policy decision-making situation around nature conservation requires examination of the operational environment. This study develops and tests a three-phase analytical framework for the evaluation of operational environment factors influencing nature conservation policy implementation. The four important operational environment factors (legal, policy, economic, and social) have been identified, to build up a framework. The framework was tested in selected countries and includes experts' opinions. Experts (n = 44) from five EU countries (Bulgaria, Croatia, Italy, Slovakia, and Slovenia) and four non-EU countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia) defined and evaluated the factors and sub-factors that affect the operational environment related to nature conservation policy implementation. The results show policy changes arising from the new governance requirements introduced by changed political regime and Europeanization are key driving factors for changes in the nature conservation operational environment. For nature conservation, these wide-reaching changes have led to new political and legal frameworks, new institutional set-ups and multilevel governance frameworks, new establishment of protected areas and Natura 2000 network, and the re-allocation of financial resources and inclusion of non-state actors in policy decision-making. However, there are also some challenges and unsolved problems that need further attention from policy decision-makers and institutions, especially related to the institutional gap, sustainable financing of nature conservation, transposition of the EU Directives into legal systems, designation of sites or improving their implementation, implementation of innovative funding schemes, and a transparent participatory process. This analytical framework can be applied to various problems related to any environmental issues or other policy implementation or management, and other sectors where public decision-making is combined with stakeholders' engagement.
In the last two decades, attention on forests and ownership rights has increased in different domains of international policy, particularly in relation to achieving the global sustainable development goals. This paper looks at the changes in forest-specific legislation applicable to regular productive forests, across 28 European countries. We compare the legal framework applicable in the mid-1990s with that applicable in 2015, using the Property Rights Index in Forestry (PRIF) to measure changes across time and space. The paper shows that forest owners in most western European countries already had high decision-making power in the mid-1990s, following deregulation trends from the 1980s ; and for the next two decades, distribution of rights remained largely stable. For these countries, the content and direction of changes indicate that the main pressure on forest-focused legislation comes from environmental discourses (e.g. biodiversity and climate change policies). In contrast, former socialist countries in the mid-1990s gave lower decision-making powers to forest owners than in any of the Western Europe countries ; over the next 20 years these show remarkable changes in management, exclusion and withdrawal rights. As a result of these changes, there is no longer a clear line between western and former socialist countries with respect to the national governance systems used to address private forest ownership. Nevertheless, with the exception of Baltic countries which have moved towards the western forest governance system, most of the former socialist countries still maintain a state-centred approach in private forest management. Overall, most of the changes we identified in the last two decades across Europe were recorded in the categories of management rights and exclusion rights. These changes reflect the general trend in European forest policies to expand and reinforce the landowners% individual rights, while preserving minimal rights for other categories of forest users ; and to promote the use of financial instruments when targeting policy goals related to the environmental discourse.
Background. In the last decade, the demand for and supply of energy wood from forests has increased, and experts expect a further increase in the future due to political and societal changes. The objective of this paper was to provide a qualitative analysis of stakeholders' perceptions of current and future trade-offs as well as of synergies between energy wood production and use and other forest ecosystem services (ES). Methods. We developed an explorative research approach and conducted semi-structured interviews with a total of 103 interviewees of six selected stakeholder groups in five European countries: Finland, Germany, Norway, Slovenia and Spain. For the analysis, we adopted a qualitative content analysis approach. Results. The results of this empirical study indicate that, across the five countries, stakeholders perceive similar trade-offs and synergies. Stakeholders perceive a strong synergy with employment whereas trade-offs regarding conservation of biodiversity are the most critical issue related to energy wood production in forests. Furthermore, stakeholders continue the classic debate about forest protection versus forest use in the energy wood context. Conclusions. Effects of energy wood production and use need to be taken into account in policy development and forest management in order to address current and future trade-offs and to tap the full potential of synergies related to other forest ES. Different characteristics of countries and regions need to be considered, and decisions need to be fostered by long-term and far-reaching political frameworks. ; The study was conducted within the COOL project (COmpeting uses Of forest Land), a project within the two ERA-Nets WoodWisdom-Net 2 and Bioenergy, and with financial support from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (programme manager: Project Management Jülich) in Germany, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Finland, the Research Council of Norway, the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport in Slovenia, and the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness in Spain. The article processing charge was funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Albert Ludwigs University Freiburg in the funding programme Open Access Publishing.
Abstract Background In the last decade, the demand for and supply of energy wood from forests has increased, and experts expect a further increase in the future due to political and societal changes. The objective of this paper was to provide a qualitative analysis of stakeholders' perceptions of current and future trade-offs as well as of synergies between energy wood production and use and other forest ecosystem services (ES). Methods We developed an explorative research approach and conducted semi-structured interviews with a total of 103 interviewees of six selected stakeholder groups in five European countries: Finland, Germany, Norway, Slovenia and Spain. For the analysis, we adopted a qualitative content analysis approach. Results The results of this empirical study indicate that, across the five countries, stakeholders perceive similar trade-offs and synergies. Stakeholders perceive a strong synergy with employment whereas trade-offs regarding conservation of biodiversity are the most critical issue related to energy wood production in forests. Furthermore, stakeholders continue the classic debate about forest protection versus forest use in the energy wood context. Conclusions Effects of energy wood production and use need to be taken into account in policy development and forest management in order to address current and future trade-offs and to tap the full potential of synergies related to other forest ES. Different characteristics of countries and regions need to be considered, and decisions need to be fostered by long-term and far-reaching political frameworks.
In the last two decades, attention on forests and ownership rights has increased in different domains of international policy, particularly in relation to achieving the global sustainable development goals. This paper looks at the changes in forest-specific legislation applicable to regular productive forests, across 28 European countries. We compare the legal framework applicable in the mid-1990s with that applicable in 2015, using the Property Rights Index in Forestry (PRIF) to measure changes across time and space. The paper shows that forest owners in most western European countries already had high decision-making power in the mid-1990s, following deregulation trends from the 1980s; and for the next two decades, distribution of rights remained largely stable. For these countries, the content and direction of changes indicate that the main pressure on forest-focused legislation comes from environmental discourses (e.g. biodiversity and climate change policies). In contrast, former socialist countries in the mid-1990s gave lower decision-making powers to forest owners than in any of the Western Europe countries; over the next 20 years these show remarkable changes in management, exclusion and withdrawal rights. As a result of these changes, there is no longer a clear line between western and former socialist countries with respect to the national governance systems used to address private forest ownership. Nevertheless, with the exception of Baltic countries which have moved towards the western forest governance system, most of the former socialist countries still maintain a state-centred approach in private forest management. Overall, most of the changes we identified in the last two decades across Europe were recorded in the categories of management rights and exclusion rights. These changes reflect the general trend in European forest policies to expand and reinforce the landowners' individual rights, while preserving minimal rights for other categories of forest users; and to promote the use of financial instruments when targeting policy goals related to the environmental discourse.
