Austria

Austria tend to cover forests all over the country including the mountainous side 13, 00 years ago, but time changed and deforestation began to occur. The Neolithic farmers began the clearance of in low land areas, and in the middle ages, the upland areas started to get clear, which decrease tree lines. In prehistoric period, forests were used by its communities, but since the middle ages, they have been taken over by the government and other private owners. Most of the forests were taken advantage of by industries and salt works. The revolution of 1848 changed that by giving ownership to aristocrats, farmers, partly to the state, and villages and towns. Currently 1% of 214,000 forest owners hold area more than 200 hectors, and 65% holds are lot less than 5 hectors, but still 80% of the forests are in private hands and the rest 20% is in state owned.

Today, only 47% of the country is covered with trees, out of which 3% is old forest, 22% semi natural and 8% artificial plantations. Forest clearance is not a major problem for Austria because of the strict laws, but forest degradation is a major conflict. Industrial pollution including Sulphur and nitrogen oxides is widely spread and is causing a gargantuan amount of damage to plant life, ecosystem, and mainly forests. It is estimated that today 93% of Sulphur pollutants come from Austrian borders and that is causing danger to all the countries surrounding Austria. Since hunting is a very famous sport in Austria, it is leading to deforestation including damage to forests, loss of biodiversity, and a decrease in soil quality.