Professional paper
Forestry and Wood Processing: the Forgotten Developmental Potentials of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County
Marinko Prka
orcid.org/0000-0001-8869-1835
Abstract
According to all groups of development indicators in Croatia, the Bjelovar-Bilogora County is almost at the bottom. The majority of components of the overall development in a particular area should be linked to the economic development, while the development of every individual region in the Republic of Croatia should rest upon its natural potentials. In addition to natural potentials for the development of agriculture, cattle breeding, etc.,
further major natural (and economic) resources of the Bjelovar region and the Bjelovar-Bilogora County are forests, forestry, collecting and processing of wood. Forestry and wood processing in the area of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County have a long tradition and play a historically important role in the overall development of this region. By presenting natural potentials for the development of forestry and wood processing, as well as some trends in the last four decades, primarily the number of employees and the produced and processed technical roundwood, it is aimed at indicating to the deteriorating state of this part of economy of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County in the last two decades. Positive developmental trends in forestry and wood processing were suspended in the early 1990s; since then, there has been a gradual yet significant decrease in the production and employment regarding wood processing, while forestry, though with increased production, has experienced a decrease in employment. The number of employees in the area of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County has been reduced by approximately 40 % in forestry, and by approximately 60 % in wood processing since the beginning of the Croatian War of Independence.
The total forest share (owned by the state and by private forest owners) in the area of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County amounts to approximately 100,000 ha or around 37 %; i.e. forests and forestland take more than 1/3 of the total county area. The total annual wood potential in the area of the Forest Administration Bjelovar consists of approximately 270,000 m3 of technical roundwood; 300,000 m3 of broadleaf cordwood; 50,000 m3 of forest wood assortments from private-owned forests; and 50,000 m3 of forest biomass; equalling almost 700,000 m3 of diverse forest wood assortments that may be collected from this area’s farm forests, whereby their stability and environment would not be significantly affected. This important economic potential of the area of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County may undoubtedly be assessed at 500,000 m3 annually. Out of the available 500,000 m3 of diverse wood assortments, in the area of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County, only a lesser part is processed annually (approximately between one third and one half) of wood, while the major part is processed and used in other regions of Croatia or, unprocessed, exported abroad. For better use of these natural potentials for the purpose of the economic development of the Bjelovar-Bilogora County, it is requested that all those involved in this segment of economy take a different approach to this problem, particularly those connected in any way with this area.
Keywords
forestry; wood processing; Bjelovar-Bilogora County; economic development
Hrčak ID:
91565
URI
Publication date:
23.10.2012.
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