2019

JSC “Latvia's State Forests” has been Managing State Forests Already for 20 Years

20 years ago, on 28 October 1999, JSC “Latvia's State Forests” (LVM) was established by an order of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia. During these years, the company has grown, developed and become an innovative and skilled forest manager, a prominent contributor to the state budget and a responsible member of society.

Already today, when going to the forest, one can see the importance of the responsible forestry decisions once made by LVM employees. The quality of forest stands has been improved thanks to timely and good quality reforestation using the best seedlings grown in LVM nurseries; the selection of the appropriate tree species for particular growing conditions is equally important. The availability of forests has also been improved through the development and restoration of the forest road network, and a major effort has been invested in renovating drainage systems that increase forest productivity and provide greater growth of forest stands. In seamless renewal felling and thinning sites we have consistently been focusing on maintaining biodiversity and preserving natural values; such areas have grown from 5% in 2001 to 17% in 2018.

“The forest sector is among the most important sectors of the Latvian economy. Today, forests cover 54% of the country's territory and provide about 20% of the export value of Latvian goods. It is evident that the development of the forest sector is sustainable and the value of the state forest is increasing. When thinking about the forest, one can recall the old wisdom: you can't see the forest behind the trees. To a great extent we can thank JSC “Latvia's State Forests” and the forest industry for the promotion of Latvia's export, economic stability and joining the euro area. We are proud that Latvia is one of the greenest countries in the world, but we rarely think about the work and responsibility of every employee and person working in the industry on a daily basis to ensure this greenness, this development. On this jubilee, it is worth looking at the forest as a whole, not at individual trees,” says the Minister for Agriculture Kaspars Gerhards.

Compared to the start of its operations, the turnover of JSC “Latvia's State Forests” (LVM) has increased more than 11 times from EUR 24 million to EUR 333 million in 2018. “These twenty years have passed like one day. I want to thank everyone who do their job day by day, investing their time and knowledge into developing the company. Let us keep to our values and continue creating a prosperous Latvia also in the future,” says LVM President Roberts Strīpnieks on this anniversary.

LVM makes a significant contribution to employment, with over 1060 companies and approximately 7000 employees in all regions of Latvia engaged in forest management, logging, timber transportation and forest infrastructure operations.

The result of LVM's economic activity, which is based on forest maintenance and regeneration, ensuring environmental protection, recreation and wood growth, has also ensured stable and increasing payments to the state budget in the form of taxes and dividends. During this time, LVM has contributed more than one billion euros to the state and municipal budgets.

More than 240 thousand hectares of forest have been restored in Latvia's state forests, including more than 151 thousand hectares by planting and sowing trees. During this time, forest roads with a total length of 7 thousand kilometres and forest drainage systems with a total length of 201 thousand hectares have been built and reconstructed. More than 100 000 students and teachers have been involved in annual forest environment education programmes to support young people's desire for practical training.

“For each of us, forest has a different value. For some, forest is a place to work, investing a significant part of their lives using their professional knowledge and skills. It is important that our contribution today is an attentive continuation of the work performed by previous generations so that the forest continues to grow in the future. Contributions in the amount of more than a billion euros to the state budget, two planted trees per each cut tree, 50 thousand jobs in the regions of Latvia - it is a way how with real results and work we can show that JSC “Latvia's State Forests” implements sustainable, economically viable, environmentally friendly and socially responsible management of state-owned forests,” says Roberts Strīpnieks, President of LVM.

Forestry is the main activity of LVM, however, the company also develops other types of activities: it provides hunting and recreation services, acquires selected seeds and seedlings for reforestation, develops subsoil extraction, and provides geospatial data services.

LVM owns 9 tree nurseries with a total area of 354.7 hectares, including 11.8 hectares of cultivated landfills and 5.2 hectares of plastic-covered greenhouses, in order to ensure high-quality and high-productivity forest plantations of the future. Since the establishment of nurseries, the volume of pine tree seedlings has almost doubled from 10.1 million in 2003 to 20 million in 2018. In turn, spruce seedlings have almost quadrupled, from 7.2 million in 2003 to 28.5 million in 2018.

The community appreciates the potential for forest recreation - the forest is a place for walks, active recreation, mushroom picking, berry picking and other activities. In 5% of its territory, the company carries out forest management, which provides these recreational opportunities; it has also established 363 recreation sites available to the Latvian residents and guests free of charge. In the forests owned by LVM, 230 protected cultural and historical monuments of national and local importance have been identified. This balances the various interests of people: provides wood to the national economy, provides forest services to the Latvian community, and respects nature's interests.

“There is still a lack of a united public opinion and understanding of responsible forest management. Forestry is regarded by some as a mining industry - just like extraction of gravel, peat or oil. However, as scientists explain, it is a mistake - forest will also exist a hundred years from now, and its value will be even greater, as tree felling and reforestation will ensure that commercial forests are more productive, of better quality and healthier in the future,” says LVM President. 

In relation to the future plans and development of the company, the President of LVM marks the development of the technological age and its growing role also in forestry. Robotization, including unmanned forestry equipment, is not a competition to man, but an assistant to protect workers from the most dangerous works in the forest. “Very soon, we will see what beautiful forests LVM has created. We will see the genetic potential of this planted forest, which is based on the decades-long contribution of Latvian scientists. I believe that after 30 years people will have a better understanding of how their pensions, salaries, construction of new hospitals or schools are also related to our work in the forest, and how quickly and efficiently we grow the forest,” says LVM President Roberts Strīpnieks.