Second Environmental Performance Review of Albania

109Chapter 8FORESTRY, BIODIVERSITYAND PROTECTED AREAS8.1 Main developments since the firstEnvironmental Performance ReviewSince the first EPR, national legislation related toforestry, biological diversity and protected areas hasbeen improved. Currently, the most importantnational policy development related to forestry andforest management is the transfer of ownership,rights to use and responsibilities for the managementof what is ultimately planned to be 60 per cent ofAlbania’s forests and pastures to local communes.8.2 Forests and forestryForest coverAccording to the 2005 Law on Forests and theForestry Service, No. 9385, forest is defined as anarea covered at least 30 per cent by dense trees onmore than one tenth of a hectare, while open forest orforest land is defined as an area covered 5-30 per centby forest vegetation, unregistered in another land-usecadastre. In 2009 the forestry lands (high forests, lowforests/coppices, shrubs and other areas with forestvegetation) encompassed 1,071,880.2 ha, whichaccounts for 37.28 per cent of the territory ofAlbania. The structure of the Albanian forestresources (forest fund), namely its division intodifferent forest types, surface covered and standvolume for the dominant forest species is presentedin table 8.1.The deciduous high forest tree species (in particularbeech and oak) were prevailing in Albania’s forestresources in 2009, both in terms of surface covered(56.8 per cent) and stand volume (69.6 per cent),while coniferous forest stands (mostly black pine, firand maritime pine) accounted for only 16.4 per centof the total forest land area and for 21.1 per cent ofthe total forest stand volume. Areas overgrown bybushes accounted for some 24 per cent of the totalforest area and 9.3 per cent of the total timbervolume.Almost three quarters of the territory extendsbetween 200 and 2,000 m above sea level, with amean value of 708 m, which is twice the average forEurope. Forests are distributed over most of thecountry but, due to the agricultural use of lowlands,are predominantly on hilly and mountainous areaswith steep and partly unstable slopes. According tothe data collected for the 2005 national forestinventory, 42.36 per cent of the sample forest plotswere located not higher than 800 m above sea level,4.47 per cent of plots were located at an altitudebetween 0 and 200 m, and 13.79 per cent between 0and 400 m. Some 44.4 per cent of sample plotsrepresented mountain forests, with the altitudinalrange between 400 and 1,000 m. As much as 41.8 percent of forest plots were located at elevated areaswith altitudes between 1,000 and 2,000 m.Importantly, the 2005 national forest inventory showsthat on the slope gradient in afforested areas, themajority (62.15 per cent) of forest sample plots werelocated on terrain with a slope gradient exceeding 40per cent where forest management, and in particularforest harvesting, should not take place. Only 2.61per cent of sample plots were in the 0-10 per centgradient category most suitable for forestmanagement practices and a further 35.24 per cent inthe 11-40 per cent category where the management offorests, including harvesting, can still beeconomically sustainable. As much as 49.75 per centof plots were in the 41-70 per cent slope gradientcategory, which is not suitable for sustainableforestry management and which, due to the highexposure of such slopes to the erosion of the verythin layer of fertile organic strata of mountain topsoils could be further intensified as a result of anyforestry operations. Finally, 12.4 per cent of forestplots were in extremely steep mountain areas wherethe slope gradient exceeds 70 per cent, indeedscarcely accessible areas, no longer suitable for anykind of management.In addition, the accessibility of forest stands whichare suitable for management is further limited by thegenerally underdeveloped network of forestry roads.Consequently, forest management practices, inparticular logging (both authorized and illegal),concentrate on the most accessible areas, directlyadjacent to existing regular transport roads.In spite of the above limiting factors, the conditionsfor growing forests in Albania are favourable, due to