Poland plans to resume logging in the ancient Bialowieza Forest. Loggers had not been working in the forest since 2018, following a ruling by the European Court of Justice. It ruled that the felling of trees in the primeval forest was illegal and that the harmful effects had not been investigated well enough.
The Polish government now says that the logging is necessary to clear paths and protect the trees from the spruce bark beetle. The latter argument was already put forward in 2016 and 2017 and led to fierce protests from environmental organizations, who moved into the area to prevent logging.
The activists felt that Poland is using the bark beetle as an excuse to make money from logging. The European Commission has previously threatened monetary sanctions if Poland does not comply with the Court’s ruling.
Poland has introduced new logging quotas, which, according to the Deputy Minister for Climate, do not conflict with the Court’s ruling. He added that in certain parts of the forest, no wood is cut until the bird mating season is over, and no trees are cut in parts of the forest that are more than a century old.
Environmental organizations are furious, saying the Polish government’s decision is a slap in the face.
–
