The felling of trees in Polish forests has been the subject of heated discussions for years, and the problem has not lost its relevance. Despite promises made by the current government, the removal of age-old trees that perform key ecosystem and social functions continues. As part of the ‘Before They Cut Your Forest’ campaign, an updated map of forest cuttings has been created. It was created by the Forests and Citizens Foundation, revealing the scale of the threat to Polish old-growth forests and valuable areas.
Interactive map of forest cuttings
The ‘Before They Cut Your Forest’ map is an interactive tool that allows citizens to check planned forest cuttings for 2025. The data on the map is based on provisional plans submitted by the State Forests at the end of 2024. The tool also takes into account orders from the Ministry of Climate and Environment in January 2025 regarding the protection of old-growth forests and postulated forest reserves. At the time of publication of the map, however, it was uncertain whether these orders would be fully implemented. On the map, users can identify areas of planned felling, allowing them to monitor activities in local forests and possibly take action to protect them. It is worth noting, however, that the map has faced criticism from the State Forests, who have found its form to be misleading and manipulative. Despite this, the tool is a valuable source of information for those interested in the state of Poland’s forests and planned management activities in their area.
Map of forest cuts – plans and their scale
The latest figures show that as much as 2.32 million m³ of timber is planned to be harvested this year from so-called old-growth forests. This means that trees as old as 300 years, including 320-year-old oaks and beeches growing in the West Pomeranian region, may go under the axe. The map also shows that huge areas of valuable forests in Warmia and Mazury, Bieszczady, Kłodzko Valley, Silesia and Pomerania have been earmarked for felling. Contrary to the hopes of many environmental organisations and local communities, this process is not slowing down, but is actually accelerating.
Social forests – a fiasco of the concept
One of the elements of the forest policy reform was supposed to be the creation of so-called social forests, i.e. forest areas of significant importance for local residents. However, the pilot project of the Ministry of Climate and Environment (MoE), launched in 2024 in 14 locations, did not deliver the expected results. According to activists and NGOs, the process was inadequately planned and additionally met with resistance from the State Forests, which tried to dilute it as much as possible. Despite numerous negotiations in the autumn of 2024, none of the assumptions were actually implemented. As a result, forests of special social value are still not institutionally protected.
Realistic forest protection? A long way to change
Although the government has declared that 20% of the most valuable forests will be protected, in practice only 3.7% of the forest area managed by the State Forests will have been secured by the end of this year. What is more, some of the areas planned for protection have already been protected to some extent. This means that the actual new protection will only cover 3% of Poland’s forests. In addition, the ministerial decisions are ad hoc and not permanently enshrined in law, which leaves room for the State Forests to circumvent them. As a result, Poland could lose a further 28,000 hectares of the most valuable old-growth forests by 2025.
Social consequences of felling
Decisions on felling are met with growing opposition from both local residents and local government officials. In many municipalities, local authorities do not receive information about planned cuttings, leading to chaos and a sense of helplessness in the face of the sudden disappearance of forests. Great concern is expressed, for example, by the residents of Bielsko-Biała, where felling threatens water-protective forests, crucial for flood prevention. Despite growing environmental awareness, tourists and local communities are increasingly seeing huge piles of felled trees, even near popular trails and refuges.
Lack of a coherent forest protection strategy
The situation in Polish forestry policy is creating frustration and a sense of chaos. On the one hand, the Ministry of Climate and Environment is taking some steps towards forest protection, while on the other hand, the State Forests are pushing their own, unconsulted proposals for protection, which are regarded as manipulation by experts and activists. It is not clear on what basis the supposedly protected areas are selected – in many cases they are not even forests, but lakes, swamps or meadows, which undermines the sense of the planned changes.
Conclusions and prospects for Poland
In order to truly protect Polish forests, a comprehensive reform of the forest management system is necessary. This requires not only better timber management, but also changes to the budget of the State Forests, which according to experts are still a wasteful institution. Currently, the most effective form of fighting for forest protection is grassroots civic pressure. There are already more than 500 initiatives protecting local forests across the country, and their number is still growing. An interactive map can also help to halt this destructive process, through citizen submissions. Will it be enough to stop mass felling?
The map is available HERE.
Source: smoglab.pl, maps.lasyiobywatele.pl, lasy.gov.pl
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