Småhöjderna, Krokom Photo: Olli Manninen

All around the mighty Hotagen nature reserve in Northern Jämtland, unprotected old-growth forests are directly bordering the reserve. These old-growth forests are still being fragmented. The timber market situation in Sweden is, at the moment, putting a large pressure on these forests.

There are hundreds of hectares of forests planned to be logged in the surroundings of Hotagen. A few of the plans have been withdrawn, at least for the time being, because of protests from NGOs. But many of the plans are still valid.

Blankvattnet, Krokom Photo: Sini Saarela

In particular, the forest company SCA has planned and lately done many old-growth forest loggings around Hotagen. SCA is notorious for its poor environmental standards and its hostile attitude towards nature conservation. Other forest owners include forest company Korsnäs, National Property Board (Fastighetsverket) and some smaler forest owners. The surroundings of Hotagen and the bordering Lierne National Park in Norway make by far the biggest intact forest landscape in the whole Central and Southern Scandinavia.

A logging in Stor-Foskvattnet in Krokom. Photo: Olli Manninen

The protection and logging situation is very similar on the Norwegian side of the border. There are many unprotected forests close to Lierne National Park. The National Park mainly consists of very low productive scrubland and bare mountain land. In Norway, the forests are mainly privately owned. The Norwegian State owns about 7 percent of the productive forest land.

Map of forests in and around the Hotagen-Lierne Intact Forest Landscape. Download the NordicForests.org Map for Google Earth here .

Greenpeace Sweden and SSNC visited the planned logging sites during 2008 and revealed logging plans in very high conservation value forest areas. Some of them were virgin ancient forests.

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The pictures in the photo galleries can be downloaded at:

• Rusvattenån, Strömsund, SCA
• Ytter-Renaflyn, Strömsund, SCA
• Linjeviken, Strömsund, SCA
• Hällingsåfallet, Strömsund, SCA
• Småhöjderna, Krokom
• Finnvattshöjderna, Strömsund, SCA
• Stor-Foskvattnet, Krokom
• Blankvattnet, Krokom

Hotagen-Lierne is included in the World Intact Forest Landscapes –report. Also this magnificent area is scandalously losing its natural values for good as the fragmentation continues. see more at: IntactForests.org

Ytter-Renaflyn, Strömsund, SCA Photo: Olli Manninen

Status: Unprotected
Land-owner: SCA
Size: >100 ha ha
Municipality: Gällivare

Pristine like pine forest exists at the top of Ratnivaara. The oldest pines are more than 300 years old. The area has got sub-alpine characteristics and contains lots of dead wood. 11 red-listed species were found in the forest such as: Hydnellum gracilipes (EN), Antrodia albobrunnea (VU) & Haploporus odorus (VU)

Read more at Naturskyddare.se. (In Swedish only)