Water, Forests, People: The Swedish Experience in Building Resilient Landscapes

Abstract

A growing world population and rapid expansion of cities increase the pressure on basic resources such as water, food and energy. To safeguard the provision of these resources, restoration and sustainable management of landscapes is pivotal, including sustainable forest and water management. Sustainable forest management includes forest conservation, restoration, forestry and agroforestry practices. Interlinkages between forests and water are fundamental to moderate water budgets, stabilize runoff, reduce erosion and improve biodiversity and water quality. Sweden has gained substantial experience in sustainable forest management in the past century. Through significant restoration efforts, a largely depleted Swedish forest has transformed into a well-managed production forest within a century, leading to sustainable economic growth through the provision of forest products. More recently, ecosystem services are also included in management decisions. Such a transformation depends on broad stakeholder dialog, combined with an enabling institutional and policy environment. Based on seminars and workshops with a wide range of key stakeholders managing Sweden's forests and waters, this article draws lessons from the history of forest management in Sweden. These lessons are particularly relevant for countries in the Global South that currently experience similar challenges in forest and landscape management. The authors argue that an integrated landscape approach involving a broad array of sectors and stakeholders is needed to achieve sustainable forest and water management. Sustainable landscape management-integrating water, agriculture and forests-is imperative to achieving resilient socio-economic systems and landscapes.

Keywords: Forest institutions; Integrated landscape approach; Landscape restoration; Resilience; Sustainable forest management; Swedish forest history; Watershed management.

Fig. 1

Trend for total standing volume in Swedish forests since 1920s (moving 5-year average). All land-use classes except protected land, high mountains and urban areas are presented. Adapted from the Swedish Forest Agency (2014)

Fig. 2

Productive forest land by owners classes in 2012. Adapted from Swedish Forest Agency (2014)

Fig. 3

Small-holder land owners and their children replanting a clear-cut area in 1903, Storuman, Sweden. Source: Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Archive