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The fallen forests: Legacy of Storm Klaus over Eucalyptus, Pines and Poplars of South-Western Europe

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Gone with the Wind

Some days after Storm Klaus hit the Northern coast of Spain and landed in Southwestern France, disruptions of daily life slowly disappear. Road blocks removed, power is being restored and rebuilding of damage to buildings and urban infrastructure slowly progresses. But out there, beyond the main roads, a vast catastrophe remains.

Gone with the wind, some of the most productive forests in Europe. Impacts in the short and medium term to rural economies and industrial wood supply are yet to be seen. The time to clean up the mess has come. It cannot be delayed. But with it, the time to start forest rebuilding must also come. It cannot be forgotten.

Galicia, Northwestern Spain


Storm Klaus damages the largest Eucalyptus Forest in Europe at Galicia, Spain / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de eucalipto más grande de Europa en Galicia, España / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 1: Damage caused by Storm Klaus to coastal Eucalyptus globulus plantations in the Northern Coast of Galicia (Northwestern Spain). (Photo courtesy Juan Picos / Asociación Galega Monte-Industria / Wikisilva. Click image to enlarge)


Storm Klaus damages the largest Eucalyptus and Pine Forests of Galicia, Spain / La tormenta Klaus arrasa los bosques de eucalipto y pino de Galicia, España / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 2: Uprooted and stem-broken Maritime Pines in coastal timberlands after sustaining winds in the range of 135 to 195 km/h from Storm Klaus. (Photo courtesy Juan Picos / Asociación Galega Monte-Industria / Wikisilva. Click image to enlarge)


Storm Klaus damages the largest Eucalyptus Forest in Europe at Galicia, Spain / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de eucalipto más grande de Europa en Galicia, España / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 3: Heavy damage to Eucalyptus nitens plantations on boggy soil pockets in the plateaus of inland Galicia (NW Spain) after +50 mm rainfall plus +135 km/h winds brought by Storm Klaus. (Photo courtesy Juan Picos / Asociación Galega Monte-Industria / Wikisilva. Click image to enlarge)


Storm Klaus damages the largest Eucalyptus and Pine Forests of Galicia, Spain / La tormenta Klaus arrasa los bosques de eucalipto y pino de Galicia, España / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 4: Uprooted and stem-broken Radiata Pines in the plateaus of inland Galicia after sustaining winds in the range of 100 to 135 km/h from Storm Klaus. (Click image to enlarge)


Les Landes, Aquitaine, France


Storm Klaus damages the largest Maritime Pine Forest in Les Landes, Aquitaine, France / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de pino más grande de Europa en Las Landas, Aquitania, Francia / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 5: Uprooted Maritime Pines in Les Landes, the largest forest of its kind in Europe, after sustaining exceeding 175 km/h from Storm Klaus. (Photo courtesy of Reuters & 20 Minutes. Click image to enlarge)


Storm Klaus damages the largest Maritime Pine Forest in Les Landes, Aquitaine, France / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de pino más grande de Europa en Las Landas, Aquitania, Francia / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 6: Near total destruction in Pinus pinaster stands to the west of Bordeaux (Les Landes, Aquitaine) is today the typical landscape feature. (Photo courtesy of Reuters & 20 Minutes. Click image to enlarge)


Storm Klaus damages the largest Maritime Pine Forest in Les Landes, Aquitaine, France / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de pino más grande de Europa en Las Landas, Aquitania, Francia / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 7: +50% levelled Pine stands will require starting over from square one. Operations for wood salvage must start before it rots in the floor if some value is to be recovered. (Photo courtesy of SIPA & 20 Minutes. Click image to enlarge)


Storm Klaus damages the largest Maritime Pine Forest in Les Landes, Aquitaine, France / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de pino más grande de Europa en Las Landas, Aquitania, Francia / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 8: Stormwood salvage operations have started in Aquitaine, but with estimated volumes around 50,000,000 m3, the task could be more challenging than by 1999. (Photo courtesy of Reuters & 20 Minutes. Click image to enlarge)

Haute-Garonne, Midi-Pyrénées, France


Storm Klaus damages the largest Poplar Forests of Aquitaine and Midi Pyréneés in France / Tempete Klaus et les peupliers du Haute Garonne / La tormenta Klaus arrasa las choperas del sur de Francia / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 9: Beyond the Maritime Pine forest of Les Landes, both in Aquitaine and the Midi-Pyrenées regions, an important amount of other cultivated forests used to stand in the Eastwards route of Storm Klaus. Among them, some of the finest poplar forests in France. (Photo courtesy of Eurosilvasur, Observatory of the forest-wood-paper resource of the Southern Atlantic Arc Regions).


Storm Klaus damages the largest Poplar Forests of Aquitaine and Midi Pyréneés in France / Tempete Klaus et les peupliers du Haute Garonne / La tormenta Klaus arrasa las choperas del sur de Francia / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo
Fig. 10: Nearly totaly levelled poplar plantations in the Haute-Garonne (Midi-Pyrénées, France) after 75 mm of rainfall in 3 days followed by +170 km/h winds brought by Storm Klaus. (Photo courtesy Howard Lloyd @ Eucalyptus Passion. Click image to enlarge)



Also in Eucalyptologics...

Storm Klaus damages the largest Eucalyptus Forest in Europe at Galicia, Spain / La tormenta Klaus arrasa el bosque de eucalipto más grande de Europa en Galicia, España / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoría y Servicios de Ingeniería Agroforestal, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation around the world / Eucalyptologics, recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo del eucalipto en el mundo


Spatial distribution of stormwood volumes after damage caused by windstorm Klaus to forestry resources in Galicia / Distribucion espacial de la madera de tormenta tras el daño causado por el huracan Klaus a los recursos forestales de Galicia / Gustavo Iglesias Trabado, GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoria y Servicios de Ingenieria Agroforestal, Lugo, Galicia, España, Spain / Eucalyptologics, Information resources on sustainable eucalypt cultivation worldwide / Recursos de informacion sobre el cultivo sostenible del eucalipto en el mundo



UPDATE: Storm Xynthia hits Galician forests... again!

Storm Xynthia Europe Forests Damage and Stormwood Map for Galicia, Basque Country, Aquitaine, Ardennes, Vosges, Meuse, Saar, Rheineland, Palatinate, Westfalia, Bavaria, Thuringia, Harz, Hesse, +4 million cubic meters stormwood / Orkan Xynthia Sturmholz Karte Deutschland, Frankereich, Spanien, +4 millionen festmeter sturmholz / Mapa de Daños Forestales Tormenta Xynthia en Galicia, Euskadi, Aquitania, Renania, Palatinado, Sarre, Vosgos, Alsacia, Lorena, Harz, Turingia, Baviera / Tempete Xynthia degats bois Allemagne, France, Espagne / Gustavo Iglesias Trabado, Roberto Carballeira Tenreiro, Javier Folgueira Lozano / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoria y Servicios de Ingenieria Forestal / Eucalyptologics: information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation worldwide


Force 4 Hurricane Storm Xynthia hits Eucalyptus and pine forests in Galicia, Spain, and causes 55 fatalities in Western Europe / GIT Forestry Consulting, Consultoria y Servicios de Ingenieria Forestal / Eucalyptologics: information resources on Eucalyptus cultivation worldwide



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3 Comments by our readers :::

Heather Milligan said...

Posted by Heather Milligan on 1/28/2009, 9:08 am, in reply to "Storm Klaus wipes out largest Eucalyptus & Pine Forests of Spain & France"

Thanks for that information. Looks dramatic. Were you effected in any way?

Gus - GIT Forestry said...

Posted by Gus on 1/28/2009, 9:59 am, in reply to "Re: Storm Klaus wipes out largest Eucalyptus & Pine Forests of Spain & France"

Luckily not except power shortages and a hasty drive to safe harbour as soon as I saw the first lone tree falling! The coastal ranges taking the worst of the blast shielded the inner plateaus quite a bit, so here it was not that scary.

My trees are quite okay, few numbers fell or tilted. Neighbouring trees also helped as windscreens. The garden took 100 km/h only. And the plantations something between 90 and 130 depending on location. But events like this affect everyone indirectly anyways. With the great mountain of varied logs now on the floor timber prices tend to change ;-)

Worst fires in a decade, worst snow storm in 20 years, and now worst winds in 25. Next thing to expect is a volcano? :D

Gus - GIT Forestry said...

800 evacuated as Iceland volcano erupts. April 14, 2010 -- Updated 1638 GMT (0038 HKT).

OK. I'll refrain commenting on asteroid impacts.


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