The demands of environmental organisations for the additional protection of 100,000 hectares of forest, the appeal of researchers for the retention of natural forests, and the demands of tourism and reindeer herding for additional protection of state land will threaten the forest industry in Lapland.
Termination of the operating prerequisites for wood processing plants will also lead to the termination of profitable and sustainable family forestry in Lapland. The forest sector in Lapland employs more than 4,000 people. Lapland has 20,000 private forest owners and two-thirds of Lapland’s wood supply comes from privately owned forests.