Flagship measure: Administrating and designing protective forests in a simple way

In connection with the protective forest there are complex legal standards and administrative procedures. Requirements and restrictions for harvest and various uses of the forest area ensure an effective protective function of forests. The long-term security of the protective function of Austrian forests enjoys top priority. The goal is to offer all protective forest actors a regional consulting service with channeled administrative and funding procedures.

Flagship measure: Administrating and designing protective forests in a simple way
© BML

The milestones and their implementation year (in parentheses) in this flagship measure:

Information pages about protective forests on the internet are set up (2020)

The homepage www.protective-forest.at provides comprehensive information on protective forests in Austria and bundles the available knowledge. Forest owners, experts and interested People can find articles and links on diverse topics, such as climate adaptation, silviculture, maps and research. In addition, the Action Program and the implementation status are presented. The responsible department of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water Management, Division III/4 - Torrent and Avalanche Control and Protective Forest Policy, together with the Protective Forest Hub Cooperation partners (BFW, ÖBf AG, BOKU) plans to continuously publish up-to-date information and knowledge on the topic of protective forests.

Administrative organisation for the creation of a "one-stop shop protective forest" is implemented (2021)

In this milestone an "one-stop shop" is to be installed at the level of the forest authorities for bundled responsibilities and concentration of procedures. The legal matters of forestry, nature conservation, hunting and water law are to be explicitly dealt with.

Proposals for the further development of the legal basis and enforcement for protective forests in adaptation to changed social and economic demands are available and have been implemented in legislation (2023)

In order to meet current, modern, practical and changed societal and economic demands in protection forests, legal bases such as for the protective forest, protective forest cooperatives and game reserve zones for the protection of the forest - are to be further developed. The stakeholders will prepare a corresponding position paper with the need for procedural concentration and service orientation for forest owners. This presentation of the need for action is to be presented to the political decision-makers and agreed upon. In this way a simple administration and design for protective forest care and management will be achieved.