VIRGIN FORESTS AND FOREST RESERVES IN ... - Natura 2000

68 Forest Reserves and their Research in Romania
The Romanian silviculture was born and influenced in the context of French and German
silvicultural school. The first Silvicultural Code, issued in 1881, stipulated the obligation
of continuity principles and the necessity of skilled forest administration and management
personnel for the state owned forest property (created in 1863). Essential peculiarities of
the natural relief led to the development of a specific silviculture (GIURGIU 1995):
– the excessive fragility and sensitivity of the geographical space determined the
immediate modification of the environmental factors.
– the dominance of uneven relief.
– the relatively poor water resources (1700 m 3 /capita).
– a very capricious climate (cyclic draughts 1894-1905, 1918-1930, 1942-1953,
1983-1993; big storms...).
The simultaneous existence of natural and artificial forests has given the possibility to
make comparison. The negative impact of dramatic climate changes upon artificial forest
is obvious mainly in introduced coniferous monocultures but also in the case of
deforestation (clear cuttings) in mountains:
THE HISTORY OF NATURE RESERVES ESTABLISHMENT
The whole history and civilisation of the local population was continuously connected to
the forest covering the main part of the land area.
Starting with 1905, naturalists and foresters were concerned about protecting the nature,
and the first reference to the forest protection was made in the Constitution in 1907. In
1912, the ‘Progresul Silvical Society’ (professional association of foresters) proposed to
the authorities, a project of National Parks like in the US of America. Due to economical
reasons it was impossible to make it happen. In 1928, at the first Congress of naturalists
here, Emil RACOVITA presented the Nature Monuments Law Project. In Romania adopted
in 1930 at the same time with the Nature Monuments Commission Foundation.
The legislative system concerning forest conservation includes also the Forest Protection
Law (1935). In 1938, Marin DRACEA, mentioned, "we didn't alternate the original
structure of our vegetation through forest species dislocation, and by dramatic changes of
the natural mixtures".
An important step forward for the forest conservation was made in 1935, when the first
National Park - Retezat (> 11,000 ha) mainly afforested, was governed by Law.
In the period 1930-1943, 36 natural reserves were constituted (total area 15,000 ha).
After the World War II, a new Nature Protection Law was adopted and the number of
natural reserves increased to 130 (75,000 ha total area). Unfortunately in 1970 the
administration rules of nature reserves were modified and the Retezat National Park
administration was dismissed. The result was the disturbance of the nature protection
activity in the entire country. Projects and studies on National Parks System Management
were issued during 1973-1978. Important studies were developed by the Geographical
Institute and the Institute of Biological Research Bucharest concerning natural flora and
fauna.