There are over 100,000 private forest owners in Estonia, and almost half of Estonia’s forest land is privately owned. The support of the forestry measure helps forest owners to carry out important activities in the cultivation of future forests, from which only future generations will benefit. According to Gunnar Reinapu, head of the KIK forestry department, maintaining young forests is often expensive, but in the long term it is necessary for the forest and beneficial to society as a whole. “Timely maintenance of young forests makes it possible to prevent natural decline and, at the same time, to use inferior trees in the natural competition for energy instead of foreign fossil fuels. A properly maintained forest will produce higher quality wood in the future, which it can be converted into sustainable products that bind carbon in the long term. This way we can manage the forest with better quality and also contribute to mitigating climate change,” explained Reinapu.
The budget for the round is 1.4 million euros. Of these, 1.2 million euros are intended for maintenance cutting, 160,000 euros for the renewal of damaged forests and 40,000 euros for the prevention of forest damage.
Piia Kiivramees, head of the support unit of the KIK forestry department, points out that since a new program period begins this year, the activities supported by the forestry measure and some application conditions have also changed slightly. “Any forest owner can submit a request for support for forestry measures via e-PRIA, but it is also possible to contact a suitable forest cooperative for help. Forest cooperative specialists help both in formalizing and submitting the grant application, as well as in organization of forestry work if necessary,” Kiivramees added.
Work can begin the day after submitting the application. To restore a forest damaged by a natural disaster or fire, the removal of the damage, the planting of a new forest crop and the mineralization of the soil can also be carried out in the calendar year immediately preceding the submission of the application.
KIK will take decisions on applications submitted by 05.21.2024 at the latest. The subsidy is paid after the work is completed and the documents have been submitted.
2023-12-25 22:00:00
forest-owners-can-apply-for-subsidies-for-a-few-more-days