Reader's Opinion | Forest nature and diverse species must be protected

Prime minister Petteri Orpon The goal of the (kok) government program is to protect all remaining natural old-growth forests on state lands. The researchers of the Finnish Environment Institute and the Natural Resources Institute are creating criteria for these forests, and the work is nearing completion. However, the process lacks transparency, and our concern for Finnish forest nature is great.

The work to draw up the criteria must be completed transparently and in consultation with the scientific community. There are distinguished natural forest researchers in Finland who are able to tell how to recognize old forests in the terrain. It is important that they are involved in finalizing the criteria. Minister of Climate and Environment Kai Mykkänen (kok) has stated that when defining the criteria, the sites mapped by the Luonnonmetsä working group and the criteria of the widely praised Metso program are also taken into account. This is worth sticking to.

Good criteria are those that help to improve the state of forest nature. In addition, the criteria must be easy to interpret and use. This is possible when the forest is defined in particular with characteristics related to the amount of rotten wood and the age of the trees, some of which must be fulfilled.

If the criteria are made too strict, sites that are valuable in terms of nature may end up being felled. In this case, nature and species are lost, which cannot be restored. In addition to the intrinsic value of forest nature, diverse species are also needed to enable sustainable use of forests: Growing trees is becoming more and more challenging in a changing climate. The more diverse the species in the forests, the better the forests are able to react to increasing disturbances, such as insect and fungal damage to the trees.

Petteri Orpo's board must make an impressive decision. Once lost, you can't get it back.

Liisa Rohweder

Secretary General, WWF Finland

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