Italian forests, a strategical asset

Italy finally has a precise National Forest Strategy (NFS). The document produced by MiPAAF in collaboration with other competent Ministries will be a tool for the benefit of the forest heritage in the collective interest of Italy. The strategic objective will be to ensure productive and sustainable management of Italy's forests, which are rich in biodiversity and able to contribute to mitigation and adaptation to the climate crisis. In addition to ecological benefits, positive social and economic effects are expected for rural and mountain communities, for today's citizens and for future generations

On 9 February, the MiPAAF decree approving the National Forestry Strategy (SFN) for the forestry sector and its supply chains was published in the Official Journal no. 33.

The aim of this document is to provide a guideline for the sustainable management of national forests in support of central, regional and autonomous provincial administrations, as required by the Consolidated Law on Forests (TUFF).

Today, more than ever, the national forest heritage plays a central role in Italian development policies, both for the protection of the cultural and landscape identities we have inherited from our past, and as a pillar for the future we are committed to building.

According to the data of the last National Forest Inventory, we are talking about more than 9 million hectares of forests and about 2 million hectares of land characterised by shrubs, neo-formations and scrub. We are therefore faced with an incredible pool of resources that covers 36.7% of the national territory and in some regions almost 50% or more of the surface.

In the last century, due to the decline of agroforestry activities, the area of our forests has increased considerably, as a result of a spontaneous colonisation of tree species in vast areas no longer controlled by man (former pastures or cultivated land). In line with the guidelines of the European Green Deal, the challenges to which the national forestry sector can provide a valid contribution are many, especially in the face of the current climate crisis. The sector can contribute to a radical decarbonisation of the economy by providing bio-based raw materials and accompanying the development of renewable energies. Obviously, all this will have to ensure full protection of the environment, biodiversity, landscape and resources. The paradigm shift from a linear to a circular economy could facilitate the protection of rural and mountain areas, including through the marketing and processing of locally sourced forest products, as well as international cooperation for the protection of forests and the restoration of degraded areas. For this strategy to be effective, a broad and far-sighted vision of the sector's policies is needed, with close coordination between environmental protection and socio-economic development policies.

It is no coincidence that the SFN sets the value offered by ecosystem services linked to forested areas as the common denominator of the set of actions to be activated. In recent years, in all the most advanced societies, there has been growing attention to guaranteeing the combination of forests and the many advantages - direct or indirect - linked to them. Fortunately, there is a growing awareness of the territorial and environmental factors that influence human life and well-being, from the supply of raw materials to the simple enjoyment of natural capital and the related cultural aspects. 

The supply of wood products and other wild forest products (cork, mushrooms, truffles, etc.), for which market demand is constantly increasing, is also included among those referred to as "life support services" and "supply services". For example, according to the data reported in the strategy document, the growth in wood consumption is associated with three aspects found on an international scale: increased consumption of bioproducts (timber for construction, furniture, packaging, paper, etc.); increased bioenergy consumption, particularly for thermal production; affirmation of new uses of renewable raw materials in the bio-economy: bio-plastics, bio-textiles, bio-medicines, bio-construction and all other materials that can replace production from 'fossil' or non-renewable raw materials.

According to forecasts reported by the SFN, in the coming decades we must prepare ourselves to face the risk of a gap that is difficult to bridge between supply and demand for wood raw materials. In fact, while current global wood consumption is estimated at around 3 billion cubic metres per year, forecasts for 2030 are for 8.5 billion and for 2050 for 13 billion. This dynamic is also found - with due proportions - in Italy. In this perspective, the Strategy intends to guide the sector's policies to avoid the real risk of dependence on foreign countries for these raw materials, making even more evident the paradox of the lack of exploitation of our domestic resources, often linked to fragile areas with problems of economic and social marginalisation.

Other contexts that deserve special attention are 'urban and peri-urban forests', which all too often suffer from embarrassing management shortcomings.

In this context, the same operational forestry experiences (mechanisation and construction) assume a relevant importance, especially in the redevelopment of degraded environments, both in public parks and in abandoned and disused areas in peripheral areas.

The care of these areas - which is necessary for aesthetic and safety reasons - could generate employment and eco-systemic services for the wellbeing of citizens and of enormous value because of their heterogeneity and continuity with urban woodland strips, tree-lined avenues, large parks, gardens, historic villas, etc.

In order to achieve this strategic document, since 2016 the Ministry of Agricultural Food and Forestry Policies has activated a process of reform of national forestry policies, working in close collaboration with the relevant Ministries, Regions and Autonomous Provinces and with the support of the National Rural Network. This process led to the approval of the TUFF and the establishment of different technical working groups for the preparation of the relevant ministerial implementation decrees. The main national stakeholders in the sector, universities and research institutes, recognised environmental and non-profit associations, trade representatives and professionals were also involved in this process. A first important result of the ongoing reform process has been the publication of the first Report on the State of Forests in Italy (RAF, 2019), a very important information base created with the collaboration of professionals, teachers and institutions. The SFN will be valid for 20 years from its publication in the Official Gazette and will need to be updated following five-yearly reviews or on specific institutional requests and in application of new international commitments.