From October to December 2021, the Nature and Forest Agency (ANB) is thinning out the next section of the New Municipal Forests. 'Thinning' is the removal of trees in the forest without the forest disappearing. There may be damage to the roads, but ANB will restore them afterwards. When works start, paths may be temporarily closed on site for safety.
The Nieuwe Gemeentebossen is a forest of Corsican pines planted manually in the 1950s to make the 'wasteland' profitable. The trees were supposed to be cut down for mining in Limburg. But they were not yet fully grown when those mines closed. So they continued to grow and now form a lacklustre forest.
Thinning this type of forest every ten years makes it more natural and ecologically valuable. The trees that remain are 'future trees'. These get a blue dot and can grow old and thicker. This can only be achieved by removing the surrounding trees. In this way, more light shines on the soil, allowing new, young trees to grow. In doing so, ANB mainly gives a chance to native deciduous tree species such as rowan, spork, birch and oak. These species provide more biodiversity, as many animals prefer them to Corsican pines. In addition, a varied forest with more different species is much less of a fire hazard. In addition, the verges of the sandy path will be widened to create a corridor that will help prevent fire from spreading. To keep it open afterwards and also to give rare plants and animals more space, it will be grazed with sheep.
The logs will be stacked to the left and right of the sandy path, near the Putsesteenweg. What the timber is used for depends on what the demand on the timber market is at the time. A common application is OSB boards for use in construction. The proceeds from the wood are reused within the Agency for Nature and Forests for nature projects.
The works will last about three months. Hiking path forest and bridle path will be temporarily closed for this, the MTB connection route will be temporarily diverted.
Find out more about why ANB is cutting down trees at www.natuurenbos.be/kappenvanbomen
