Hungary - Forestry



Forests totaled 1,840,000 hectares (4,547,000 acres), or 19.9% of Hungary's total land area, in 2000. The forest consists of the following main species: oak, 23%; black locust, 20%; pine and fir, 15%; Austrian and turkey oak, 11%; poplars, 9%; beech, 6%; hornbeam (blue beech), 6%; and others, 10%. Because of the relatively small forest area and the high rate of exploitation, Hungary traditionally has had to import timber. During the 1960s, a systematic reforestation program began. Reforestation affected about 440,000 hectares (1,087,000 acres) during 1960– 68 but only about 65,000 hectares (161,000 acres) in 1970–74 and 64,322 hectares (158,942 acres) during 1975–81. From 1990–2000, some 136,000 hectares (336,000 acres) were annually reforested.

Roundwood production has remained stagnant in recent years, at 5,902,000 cu m (208 million cu ft) in 2000. Less than 12% of the production is softwood; Hungary's wood imports consist mostly of softwood, while exports are based on hardwood products. Production of wood products in 2000 (in thousands of cu m) included: sawn wood, 291; particleboard, 484; hardboard, 61; and veneer sheets, 14.

Privatization of agricultural land, including forests, finished in 1996. According to estimates from the Ministry of Agriculture's Forestry Office, 55% of forests were under state control, 44.5% were owned by private individuals, and 0.5% belonged to municipalities.

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