TIRANA, Feb.8 – After decades of illegal logging and clearing for agriculture, which have seriously dwindled Albania’s forest cover, parliament decided to put an end to the practice by passing a ten-year moratorium on wood-cutting in the country. The ban is valid for industry or export purposes, whereas logging for heating purposes will be allowed albeit under the supervision of local authorities. The new law also transfers the management of forests entirely into the hands of local government.
Another important provision in the law is that it does not allow for a change of destination for forest areas. Often woodlands were set on fire on purpose in order to pave the way for farmlands or constructions. With the entry into force of the new law, if woodlands fall prey to deforestation they have to undergo forestation, as turning forests into farmland or other uses will no longer be permitted.
Current logging licenses will be suspended for a six-month period and will be re-negotiated, according to the Minister of Environment Lefter Koka.
Koka said that Albania has lost 14 percent of its forest cover in just ten years and that 2,700 logging permits have been issued in the past.
However, credible figures are hard to come by as statistics often turn into a political game with sides trading accusations and trying to shift the blame on each other. What’s certain is that entire forests have been lost causing ecological destruction on a vast scale, while efforts to recover lost woodlands throughout the years have been minimal for not to say nonexistent.
The moratorium is seen as the only way to stop this environmental massacre, not only to preserve what’s left of Albanian forests but also to recover a part of what has been lost in previous years.
In addition to resulting in significant habitat and biodiversity loss, deforestation is also considered as an exacerbating factor in the recent string of floods that the country has faced as a result of massive soil erosion, therefore making the passing of the logging ban an emergency.
However, the effectiveness of the decade-long moratorium is yet to be tested since despite plans for a ban were announced months ahead, it is reported that logging activity has continued undeterred or even intensified ahead of the looming ban.
