We sometimes forget just how significant an influence EU decisions have on the operating environment of Finland’s forest sector. Of course, once negotiations on an EU regulation or directive are concluded, people understand that consequences are to be expected.
The Nature Restoration Regulation is a striking example of an EU legal act with considerable impact. It has to be said that some of the consequences of its application cannot be foreseen, they will only emerge once the regulation is fully implemented. The need to amend national legislation sometimes arises for unforeseen reasons, and sometimes a very long time after the original legal act was adopted.
The clarified interpretation of the EU Birds Directive swiftly incorporated into the Forest Act
In its original form, the EU Birds Directive was adopted back in 1979, with the aim of protecting all bird species living wild in Europe. One of the ways it does this is by prohibiting the deliberate disturbance of nesting birds. From a forestry perspective, the directive’s impact changed significantly in August 2025, when the Court of Justice of the European Union handed down a ruling in a case concerning tree felling during the bird nesting season in Estonia. The ruling provided a more precise interpretation of what, in the court’s view, counts as deliberate disturbance.
EU directives are implemented by transposing them into national law, so in Finland the new interpretation created a need to amend the Forest Act and the Nature Conservation Act. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Ministry of the Environment and the Finnish Parliament acted commendably quickly to ensure no conflict arose between EU and national legislation. The amended national legal acts, the most important of which is the Forest Act, entered into force in early June 2026.
Even before this, the Nature Conservation Act already prohibited damaging previously discovered or observed nests, while the forest sector’s internal guidelines recommended avoiding felling during the nesting season in bird-rich areas. The Forest Act now contains provisions restricting forestry operations during the nesting period. Timber harvesting is categorically banned for three months, coinciding with the peak of the nesting season, in areas with the highest bird density. These are lush, herb-rich forests dominated by broadleaved trees, coniferous mires and floodplain forests. All known or observed nests must be preserved, and throughout the nesting period, in all areas, large aspens, hollow trees and standing dead trees favoured by nesting birds may not be disturbed.
Over time, the EU Birds Directive has been implemented somewhat differently across member states. However, the new, more precise interpretation will require changes to be made in other member states too, even where it may seem that only a few guidelines need updating. The European Commission is currently examining the directive’s actual impact; some member states would like to see certain changes made, but the future on this question is extremely uncertain. The main short-term task is to ensure that Finland’s Forest Act works as it is meant to.
The changes create new problems for controlled burning and storm-damage clearance
When recommendations are hurriedly turned into law, complications tend to arise. Problems appear that nobody had previously thought of. That is what happened at Metsähallitus Forestry Ltd. We have drawn up internal guidelines on the new legislation and run webinars for our staff. Some problems are still awaiting a good solution.
One example of an unresolved problem is controlled burning. When areas of commercial forest are burned as a conservation measure, this is nonetheless classed as a forestry operation and, during the nesting period, subject to the same restrictions as other forestry measures. Yet controlled burning is an important conservation element within forestry. It produces charred wood and charcoal, creating habitat that many endangered and rare species depend on.
Metsähallitus Forestry Ltd has carried out various types of burning on 400–600 hectares each year. This work requires extensive preparation, and its execution depends on weather conditions. The best time for burning is May and June, when the soil is dry enough but the ground vegetation that hinders burning is still relatively low. If controlled burning is not permitted during the nesting period, it will be extremely difficult to reach the same hectare totals as before.
A second tricky example is the removal of storm-felled trees, required under the Forest Damage Prevention Act to prevent insect damage. It appears that, going forward, the nesting-period bans will allow only storm-felled conifers to be removed. Fallen broadleaved trees, which pose no risk of insect spread, will have to be removed outside the nesting period. Meanwhile, trees still standing in a storm-damaged stand may not be felled during the nesting period. As a result, work in these areas will have to be carried out in several separate rounds, which makes little sense from either a conservation or an economic standpoint.
Beyond the issues mentioned, there are other questions that need a practical solution. It remains to be hoped that all of this will be taken into account when the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry drafts regulations supplementing the Forest Act.