Hungary’s first refrigerated forest seed storage facility was handed over

(Photo: AM)

The state secretary emphasized that one of the most important current tasks of the forestry sector is to develop and implement active climate adaptation solutions using the results of modern technology and forestry science. Péter Zambó emphasized that it is not only necessary to talk about the climate emergency, but also to act on merit. All the programs of the Ministry of Agriculture aimed at increasing forests serve to increase carbon sequestration and reduce the effects of climate change. For example, the National Afforestation Program or the Settlement Afforestation Program, and the applications of the Common Agricultural Policy, in the framework of which the Ministry of Agriculture supports the development of propagating material production with special tenders, so that the domestic forestry sector can respond to the challenges arising from climate change in accordance with the expectations of the times. Due to increasingly hectic weather conditions, the propagating material storage technologies used in previous decades are less able to ensure the storage of oak acorns until sowing without a significant decrease in quality. The purpose of Mecsekerdő Zrt.’s investment was the construction of a cold storage facility that enables the propagating material used during afforestation to be stored under controlled conditions for up to one year. The total value of the investment is HUF 150 million, for which the Ministry of Agriculture provided HUF 125 million owner support.

Péter Zambó pointed out that this innovative development also makes it possible for our native tree species to receive propagating material from areas further south within an organized and controlled framework

One of the possible directions for adapting to climate change is to collect the acorns needed to renew forests from biomes with genetic stocks that have already adapted to a drier and warmer climate. We have to look for suitable sources southwest of our country, in the Balkans and Turkey. In the pilot program of the Forestry Propagation Material Product Council and the Forest Science Institute of the University of Sopron, oak acorns from Turkey will arrive in Hungary in the near future, where the tests necessary for wide-scale application will begin, said the state secretary. In our country, the most important task of foresters, and especially of state forestry companies, is to protect and increase the national green wealth. The sector provides the benefits of forests to each individual and to society as a whole. Part of this mission is adaptation to climate change and operational action for adaptation, emphasized Péter