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Forest owner associations joining in Croatia at the national level
The Union of the Croatian Forest Owner Associations was established on the 7th of June.
 At its Foundation Assembly on the 7th of June, the Union of Croatian
Forest Owner Associations was established in order to gather forest
owners at the national level and to represent their interest in Croatia
and abroad.
This was enabled through 22 local forest management
associations’ joint efforts and the support of many stakeholder
organisations of the Croatian forestry sector, such as e.g.
- the
Ministry of Regional Development
- Forestry and Water Management
- the
State Advisory Service for Private Forests of Croatia
- the Association
of Foresters in Croatia
- the Chamber of Engineers of Forest and Wood
Technology
- the City of Zagreb.
Guests from the Slovenian Forest
Owner Association and the Confederation of European Forest Owners
(CEPF) also addressed the meeting and assured their specific support to
the new organisation.
In fact, stakeholders in Croatia have been working hard since 2005 to
achieve this event. This meeting was the third national level event of
private forest owners in Croatia.
In Croatia 22% of the forests belong to private owners totalling
approximately 600.000 hectares in some 600.000 forest estates.
Correspondingly, the average estate size is 1,0 hectare of forest.
However, with the establishing of the Advisory Service for Private
Forests and the opening of the Green Tax Fund for private forestry
activities since 2006, the development of private forest management was
accelerated in Croatia. It is also envisaged that in 10 years time all
private forests will have a forest management plan. In addition, a
Forest Guard Service will also be established. Both initiatives provide
useful tools for activating private forest management in the country.
Mr. Mario Pecnik (on picture), the elected president said in his
addressing speech that the Union’s work program aims among others
at:
- Promotion of the local and regional cooperation of forest owners
- Assistance in forest management to private forest owners through advisory services
- Assistance of private forest owners in capacity building
- Participation at national forest policy setting as national level representative of private forest owners
- Facilitating the links between the forestry administration and forest owners
The Assembly elected also the Board of the Union and its other bodies,
such as the Supervisory Committee. Mr. Miljenko Zupanic was
appointed Secretary General of the Union.
It was commonly expressed by different union members that the union
(national association) intents to act as partner for national forestry
bodies and other stakeholder groups, in particular the State Advisory
Service for Private Forest Owners and internationally to CEPF and that
these will contribute to Croatia’s successful EU membership.
For further information, please contact:
Mr. Miljenko Županic, Secretary General
Tel.: ++385 1 6273 000 ; E-Mail: zupanicm@sumins.hr
Atilla Lengyel, Policy Adviser CEEC, Confederation of European Forest Owners,
Contact Office Budapest, H-1068 Budapest, Benczúr utca 34.
Tel:+36 27769045, Fax:+36 13517029, Email: Lengyel@cepf-eu.org;
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CEPF formed a partnership with PEFC International Stakeholder Forum 
Guidance for sustainable mobilization of wood in Europe