Forest extension service

Forest Extension Service for private forests in Croatia

Forest Extension Service is a specialized public institution for conducting matters in part of public authorities, improving management of forests and woodlands in private forests.
It was founded on 2 June 2006. by regulation of the Government of the Republic of Croatia.
It started work at the beginning of 2007.

Reasons for founding:

• Forests in the Republic of Croatia cover about 48% of territory and hold an important position in the state's economy
• 22% of forests in the Republic of Croatia are in private property (approx. 600,000 ha)

• Average wood stock in private forests is about 80 m3/ha, which is considerably lesser than the average in state-owned forests.
• There are about 600,000 forest owners, and the average size of a private forest property is less than 1 ha.. 
• Only 6% of private forests have got a management plans, and there aren't enough data about private forests. 
• Undertaken international obligations on sustainable forest management, directed towards changes in approaching private forestry.

FOREST EXTENSION SERVICE GENERAL AIMS:

IMPROVING FOREST MANAGEMENT IN PRIVATE FORESTS by founding a "service" for private forests, which implements the laws of forestry trade, through the means of its authorities and problem tasks, towards sustainability and biodiversity in private forests.

Ways of achieving this aims:

• Organizing the development of management plan.
• Distribution of subsidies for committed works from the "Green taxes" fund.
• Advising forest owners on forest management and providing professional education. 
• Organizing sales of wood and timber products via tenders
• Forest Extension Service Offices around whole Croatia.

WOOD STOCK IN STATE-OWNED AND PRIVATE FORESTS ACCORDING TO TREE SPECIES

Wood stock in private forest is 78,301 million m3 with an average annual increase of 2,144 millions m3.

* data from “Informative booklet for private forest owners”, Forest Research Institute, Jastrebarsko 

Forest Extension Service works through subsidiaries on the field, and counts ten of them.

Service activities

• Collecting and keeping data of private forests.
• Advisory and educational work with forest owners and forest owners' associations.
• Organizing professional education, seminars and workshops on forestry.
• Educating and informing forest owners on marketing trends in private forests. 
• Stimulation of forest owners' associations and their activities. 
• Managing the creating process and implementation of the management program in private forests.
• Conducting allocation in private forests - directly or via licensed person, process that approves the felling of marked trees in accordance with the principles of sustainable management and promotion of biodiversity.
• Organizing and preparing forest owners for using the international fund means intended for forestry development and rural growth, and participating in international projects.
• Managing procedures of acquiring forest owners' rights for using funds from "Public Benefit Functions of Forests" (means gathered through taxation - the so called "Green taxes") for conducted work in their forests.
• Developing a market for forest products from private forests.

SCHEME OF FORESTRY IN CROATIA

MINISTRY OF REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, FORESTRY
AND WATER MANAGEMENT

Forest management

• "FOREST EXTENSION SERVICE"-Service for private forests 
• "HRVATSKE ŠUME" Ltd. - National establishment for management of state-owned forests
  
  

Scientific research and Educational institutions

• FACULTY OF FORESTRY
• FOREST RESEARCH INSTITUTE
• SECONDARY SCHOOLS OF FORESTRY