FORESTS IN BELGIUM,    FORESTS IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

Preserving nature

In Belgium, the European Natura 2000 network covers 221 000 ha in Wallonia and 136 000 ha in Flanders, accounting for a total of 384 500 ha or 13 % of the national territory.
Integral or managed nature reserves are scatted across the country. In the Walloon Region these reserves cover around 10 000 ha.

Forestry Certification

The SRFB, the Royal Forestry Society of Belgium, supports PEFC certification. This refers to the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification and is the world’s largest forest certification system, covering 221 600 000 ha at the start of 2010, or 70 % of the certified surface area in the world. In Wallonia, this covers 51 % of the forest surface, or 281 000 ha, and 260 Belgian companies have already had their chain of control certified by the PEFC. The FSC, the Forestry Stewardship Council, is also present, covering 15 000 ha in the Flemish Region.

Forest and CO₂

The Belgian forest stocks around 480 million tonnes equivalent of CO2 (woody biomass, forest litter, dead wood and surface layer of soil). In addition, thanks to the removal of wood and its long-term use, the forest offsets the annual CO2 emission of 800 000 cars!
However, the most attractive feature of wood when it comes to CO2 is in fact substitution. The wood used in construction, furnishing, etc. replaces other materials, such as PVC, concrete or aluminium, which consume far more energy in terms of production. The same applies for wood used as energy, which is replacing fossil fuels.