Forests for People

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Sweden – a forest kingdom

Marcus Öhman, Ministry for Rural Affairs, Sweden and Björn Merkell, Swedish Forest Agency

ompared to many other industrialized countries, Sweden

is unique in terms of its large forest coverage. Situated

in the most northern part of Europe, coniferous trees

dominate the forests. These forests and the people of Sweden

have been interconnected for thousands of years. Notably, living

clonal trees have been found in Sweden that are more than

9,000 years old.

Forests, and all the goods and services they have provided through

history, have played a major role in the development of the Swedish

economy and culture. In the early days trees were very important for

building material, firewood, charcoal production, fodder and fibre.

During that time forestry was mainly carried out as part of small-

scale farming activities.

In the 1800s there were clear signs of excessive deforestation.

Although Sweden has had forest regulations dating back to the

Middle Ages, there were few policy instruments at a national level

to regulate how forests were utilized. Forests were turned into farm-

land and foresters had few rules to consider regulating the level

of harvesting. The sawmill industry had been growing, which led

to overexploitation, especially in the northern part of Sweden. In

addition, there was a growing demand for charcoal by the mining

industry. Further, there was little, or no, reforestation.

Forests were allowed to deteriorate with little interfer-

ence. Consequently, forest stocks had reached their

lowest levels by around 1900.

To counteract the situation, measures were taken

to replant trees and in 1903 Sweden’s first Forestry

Act was launched. Two years later forestry boards at

a county level were introduced. This had a consider-

able positive effect on forest cover and timber volume.

The level of felling became related to growth and with

that Swedish forestry moved towards sustainable forest

management. This showed that robust forestry policies

were needed to maintain sustainability. It also showed

the importance of using various instruments, includ-

ing reforestation, legislation and management at a local

level. Because of the managerial measures taken early

in the 1900s and those that followed, the total standing

volume of Swedish forests has increased by around 80

per cent from that time to now.

As the forests of Sweden were recovering in the early

20th century, their importance in terms of revenue at

a national scale increased. Pulpwood became more

In Sweden, forests play a very important role for recreation including a range of activities such as running, walking, hunting and fishing

Image: Marcus Öhman