Lasy ochronne wokół miast w zarządzie Regionalnej Dyrekcji Lasów Państwowych w Białymstoku

Forests in Poland cover about 30% of the country’s area; most of them are public forests managed by the State Forest National Forest Holding. Some of them have protection status in order to perform specific functions related to their location. One of the essential categories of protection forests is located within the administrative borders of towns and near areas with more than 50,000 inhabitants. Such areas are significant from the social point of view, and their primary function is to create proper space for the inhabitants’ leisure and biodiversity protection. However, management in forests around towns is increasingly controversial, which in the area of the Regional Directorate of State Forests in Bialystok is manifested by more and more frequent conflict situations. In order to meet social expectations while effectively ensuring the continuity of the forests for future generations, a change in the way of forest management in and near cities is necessary. The key element is probably to develop a dialogue model with the local community to manage socially important forests efficiently and mitigate emerging social controversies.