Forestry

The EU promotes sustainable forest management with the following objectives:

• Create and preserve jobs and otherwise contribute to rural livelihoods
• Protect the environment by preserving the soil, minimising erosion, purifying water, protecting aquifers, improving air quality, absorbing carbon, mitigating climate change, and preserving biodiversity
• Protect settlements, roads and other infrastructure from mudslides and avalanches
• Monitor the state of forests to meet environmental agreements
• Improve the competitiveness of forest-based industries in the internal market
• Promote the use of wood and other forest products as environmentally friendly products
• Reduce poverty in developing countries by furthering forest law enforcement, fair trade conditions and halting deforestation and illegal logging

In line with these policies, the EU adopted a five-year forest action plan in 2006. This plan provides for:

• Actions enhancing the multi-functional role of forests at the level of both the EU and the Member States
• Co-ordination between the EU actions and the forest policies of the Member States