Lasy ochronne w Polsce – zarys historii na tle Europy

Current forest protection related to the economic use of natural resources is compatible with the modern understanding of nature conservation as a whole – protection of ecosystems, biodiversity, natural and anthropogenic processes occurring in nature. It is also consistent with the principles of sustainable development. Forest protection is governed by a number of legal acts. Historical reasons underlay this diversity. The historical background of the emergence of protective forests intertwines with the history of forestry, strongly dependent on the economy of the region. In the Western Europe, forest management was strongly correlated with the development of mining, which needed significant quantities of wood to strengthen underground constructions and the development of a metallurgical industry based on wood as an energy material. Forestry was to ensure uniformity in the supply of wood, which was beginning to be scarce in more densely populated industrial areas. In Poland and other countries with a subsequent development of an economy based on mining industry, forestry was based on the rational use of renewable forest resources, but slightly different reasons for the development of conscious forest management. It can be assumed that the forestry of our cultural and economic zone developed in the estates as a way to obtain additional income. This simplified comparison shows the difference of causes and the similarity of the effect – the development of forest management and with it the development of the idea of protecting forests that perform protective functions. The aim of this study is to show the historical background of the existence of protective forests – a special form of protection of natural resources, resulting today with the Act on Forests and occupying over half of the area of the State Forests in Poland. The paper is a review of the historical sources. We describe the evolution of the reasons for which the forests are protected. It was emphasized that this was taking place in parallel or earlier than the decisions resulting from conservative nature conservation. The article is an attempt to prove that protective forests originate from the fear of insufficient forest resources, lack of certain specific forest types at an early stage of settlement.