Woods and forests in North Rhine-Westphalia

The 915,800 wooded ha that make up some 27 % of the total area of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia are an irreplaceable part of our environment. As a formative element in a cultivated landscape that has been exploited intensively for centuries, these regions fulfill vital functions in terms of protection and relaxation in our densely populated industrial state today. Visitors to forested areas cannot only take advantage of a wide range of recreational facilities, such as forest playgrounds, conservation areas and nature trails, there are also close to 60,000 km of hiking trails to explore.

Maintaining high priority for our forests to conserve nature and protect the environment is just as important in sustainable forest management as attaining income for the forest owners, securing jobs for forestry workers and providing raw materials to the wood industry and related trades.

In contrast to fossil resources, which are available in limited quantities only, timber grown sustainably and CO2-neutral is the most important renewable raw and basic material as well as energy source of the future in the world today. With currently more than 250,000 workers and approximately € 35 billion in sales a year, the forestry and wood industry, which continues to grow worldwide in its ecological and economical significance, has long since surpassed such traditional branches of industry in North Rhine-Westphalia as the textile industry, mining or the chemical industry (' Clusterstudy).

Because the forest is so ecologically, economically and socially important for the densely populated industrial state of North Rhine-Westphalia, in 2003 the state government and the University of Münster decided on founding the Centre for Forest Ecosystems.