ZLV Online

Afforestation is a principal measure to establish a new forest on land which has never been covered with forest or that one being deforested a long time ago and then used for other human purposes (agriculture). In the Czech Republic, the first colonization of the land dates back to the Neolithic period 5,000 B.C. First records from Classical world mention our lands as inaccessible due to horrible woods and swamps. These large forests lying along borders of the Czech lands were kept undisturbed till the beginning of medieval colonization. Then both lay and ecclesiastical lords including their peasants were allowed to clear the forests to obtain an agricultural land. At the beginning of the modern era some areas were found so treeless that first afforestations were done to provide people with both fuel and timber. The land use was rapidly influenced by consequences of wars. However a plan-based forest management emerges along with the first Austro-Hungarian laws only at the beginning of the 18th century. The area of forest land had started to increase since that time. Some land was also afforested in order to limit or stop damage caused by floods at the end of the 19th century. Very large areas were afforested within confiscated land after the World War II. The total forest land has been increasing till these days. Both Czech government and the European Union support land use change in terms of providing subsidies for afforestation of less-productive agricultural land.