Woody biomass consumption in Montenegro and its contribution to the realization of the national 2020 renewable energy target

This paper is the continuation of the presentation of results obtained in comprehensive research of woody biomass consumption in Montenegro conducted as a part of the FODEMO/MONSTAT project “Wood fuels consumption in Montenegro”. The previous paper (No.2, 2013) showed results of wood fuels consumption for households heating and this paper shows their consumption for the other energy purposes as well as its participation in total final energy consumption in Montenegro. Total consumption of woody biomass for energy and non-energy purposes in Montenegro in 2011 was 1.06 million m3, out of which 732.9 thousand m3 or 69.1% was in the form of firewood and 326.6 thousand m3 or 30.8% was in the form of industrial roundwood. Additionally, 251 m3 of woody biomass in the form of wood residue were used for the needs of charcoal producers and households. Apart from this, 423 tonnes of wood briquettes, 948 tonnes of wood pellets, 1039 tonnes of charcoal, 86,193 m3 of wood residue from industry and 5,254 m3 of wood waste from construction industry were also used for energy purposes. Total final consumption of wood energy, which includes the consumption of all wood fuel categories, was 7,275.04 TJ or 173,761 toe (tonne of oil equivalent) in Montenegro in 2011, which is equal to the value of 2,020,844,444 kWh. The size of energy values and significance of wood energy is best shown by the fact that wood is the third most important energy-generating product in final energy consumption in Montenegro, just behind petroleum products and electricity. Compared to final consumption of electricity of 12,290 TJ, value of wood energy in the amount of 7,275.04 TJ is 59.2% of electricity consumption

Trends of production and consumption of beech roundwood on the European market

By the development and analysis of the model of beech roundwood production and consumption trends in the most important European countries, Serbia and Europe altogether, for the period 1990-2000, the paper identifies the regularities in their trend, based on which the relations in the production and consumption trends are analyzed. Based on the elements obtained in this way, the paper points to the possibilities of selling beech wood offered by the European market

Wood fuels consumption in households in Montenegro

The paper presents the results of researching wood fuels consumption in households in Montenegro in the heating season 2011/2012. The research was conducted in the period October-November 2012 on the sample of 5% of the total number of households which stated to use solid fuels for heating purposes in the 2011 census. Results of the conducted researches on the presence and amounts of fuels consumed in households in Montenegro showed that total firewood consumption in the heating season 2011/2012 (both urban and rural households) was 703,571 m3. Wood consumption is the lowest in the households in the municipalities in the coastal zone, it is somewhat higher in central zone and the highest in the zone on the north of Montenegro. Average wood consumption in households in the coastal zone municipalities is 3.79 m3, in the central zone it is 5.02 m3 and on the north of Montenegro it is 6.74 m3/household. Observed on the level of Montenegro, average firewood consumption per household was 5.49 m3 and as such it best represents relatively low consumption level in the coastal zone and high consumption level on the north of Montenegro. Compared to the neighboring countries, average firewood consumption per household in Montenegro in the amount of 5.49 m3 is significantly lower than the average consumption in Serbia which is 7.3 m3/household as well as in Slovenia in the amount of 6.5 m3

National policy frameworks for implementation of EUTR requirements in the Western Balkans: a comparative analysis of Slovenia, Croatia, and Serbia

Although the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR) entered into force nine years ago, its implementation is uneven among EU member states. In addition, some Western Balkan countries are still characterized by weak legality monitoring which increases the risk of trade in illegally harvested timber both originating from the region and from other sources. Regardless of this, research on the policy frameworks for the implementation of EUTR in the Balkan countries is limited. Our study aims to contribute to filling this gap by deepening the analysis of policy frameworks for the EUTR implementation in the Western Balkan countries (Slovenia, Croatia, and Serbia). Qualitative content analysis was conducted on 22 policy documents from the three countries. Documents were coded deductively, using coding categories derived from EUTR. Targeted countries do not have policies directly addressing illegal logging or the prevention of illegal activities and show differences with reference to how EUTR requirements are embodied within national legislation. As EU member states, Slovenia and Croatia implemented EUTR through laws, however, while the Slovenian Forest Act addresses all EUTR obligations, the Croatian Law on EUTR Implementation does not directly address the obligation of legality. This obligation is addressed by the Croatian Law on Forests. As Serbia is not an EU member, it did not implement EUTR, nevertheless Serbian Law on Forests addresses all EUTR obligations yet has some discrepancies regarding traceability obligation. Our findings indicate that the reporting quality of Competent Authorities in Slovenia and Croatia should also be improved, which is in line with the findings of existing grey literature and technical reports, such as WWF (2019), the European Commission (2020) and ClientEarth (2020). With ongoing discourses on Green Deal policies, the increasing focus on “deforestation-free” commodities, and the emerging of an EU taxonomy for environmentally sustainable economic activities, stricter implementation of EUTR (or EUTR-like) requirements might be expected at the EU level. Western Balkan countries will be no exception, and decision-makers, forestry professionals, as well as operators and traders, will face new challenges. To successfully implement EUTR, an increased number of checks, as well as stricter fines, will be needed along with improvements in the forest governance and policy: targeted countries will need to become more transparent and responsible concerning information availability

Transposing EUTR Requirments in the Western Balkans: multiple case study of Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro

Although between 2015 and 2020 the deforestation rate had a 40% global decrease compared to 1990s values, deforestation and forest degradation remain major concerns. The size, trends and impacts of these processes are emphasized by illegal practices. To halt them, the European Union (EU) is taking a lead regulatory role through flagship policies, such as the Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) program, including the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR), and the newly adopted European Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR). While the EUDR is not yet implemented, evaluation reports of EUTR and FLEGT implementation present inconclusive results, highly dependent on the national context of EU member states or exporting countries. Among high-risk exporting countries are also some Balkan countries, considered as a corridor of illegal timber and timber products from Eastern to Western Europe. Although some scholars focused on forest and wood trade legality for timber in the Balkans, existing studies are patchy and there is limited research on how Balkan countries are adapting national forest policies to the EUTR. This study aims to contribute filling this gap by identifying the main actors involved in the adaptation to the EUTR of forest policies within selected Western Balkan countries (Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and the Republic of Srpska, BH), as well as investigating their roles and relations. Using multiple embedded case study design, we conducted a qualitative content analysis of policy documents and 30 key stakeholder interviews in selected countries. We used network analysis to map the actors involved and influenced by adaptation of national policies, as well as to examine the resource and information flows between them. Our results indicate that in all targeted countries state actors are the key stakeholders: they form small elite communities representing policy networks characterized by rather formal patterns of information exchange and resource dependency. This indicates the persistence of a strong state authority and weak shifts towards innovative ‘soft’ forest governance. Our research wishes to contribute to a better understanding of forest policy adaptation and paves the way for more effective measures in combating deforestation and promoting sustainable forest management in the Balkan countries

Institutional and actor-oriented factors influencing timber legality in selected Western Balkan countries: Multiple case study of Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, and the Republic of Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

This paper investigates timber legality issues in the Western Balkans by examining the coherence of national policy frameworks in five Western Balkan countries (Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, and the Republic of Srpska, BH) with the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR) requirements. The study uses a multiple-embedded case study design to investigate national policies and regulations on preventing and tackling illegal logging and those dealing with the trade in timber and timber products. A qualitative content analysis of retrieved documents was conducted to check the extent to which EUTR requirements are covered. Interviews with 36 key actors across selected countries were conducted to analyse their perceptions of the EUTR and the recently approved European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), focusing on awareness, transparency, information flow, resources, and challenges of ensuring timber legality. The study also distinguished institutional and actor-oriented factors influencing the transposition of EUTR and forthcoming EUDR requirements into national policies and forest management practices. The contribution offers a comparative gap analysis of EU requirements' incorporation within targeted countries' national policy frameworks and an overview of common and opposing perceptions on timber legality and legitimate forestry practices among key stakeholders in five Western Balkan countries