Acta Scientiarum Polonorum
Silvarum Colendarum Ratio et Industria Lignaria

Polish forests are increasingly experiencing the adverse effects of abiotic factors. Hurricane winds cause enormous losses in forest ecosystems, not only economically, but also environmentally and socially. The paper analyses hurricane-induced damage in terms of its impact on the quality and value of wood. This was done based on data collected from the Zwoleń Forest District regarding areas affected by the hurricane in 2012. The damage occurred on an area of 200 ha and was estimated at 26 thousand m³ of wood.

The analysis showed a decrease in the quality of the obtained wood, and consequently a decrease in its value. A significant shift in the volume of wood was found from higher to lower quality classes, as well as a transfer of large-sized wood to middle-sized wood. This resulted in a decrease in the unit price for 1 m³ of wood. In the case of post-hurricane wood, the loss amounted to an average of PLN 38 /m³. As a result, this resulted in a loss for the Zwoleń Forest District of over PLN 990 thousand. Moreover, for the areas completely destroyed and subject to renewal, losses on stand growth were established at the level of PLN 107 thousand. Increased harvesting of post-hurricane timber resulted in organizational changes and changes in the current management of forests in the Zwoleń Forest District.