Forestry organizations LRF Skogsägarna and Mellanskog are demanding a crisis fund of 400 million kronor from the Swedish government to upgrade private roads used for transporting storm-felled timber in Gävleborg and Dalarna. The storm Johannes hit the forestry industry hard in these regions, with the Swedish Forest Agency estimating that around 11 million cubic meters of forest were felled when the storm swept through at the end of last year. In a letter to Infrastructure Minister Andreas Carlson, the organizations warn that many road owners, often small road associations and private individuals, cannot afford to reinforce or repair their roads to handle the heavy timber transports.
Without state funding, roads risk being closed, leaving storm-felled timber stranded in the forest. The organizations want the government to allocate the funds specifically for measures that increase road load-bearing capacity and repair damage from intensive transport work. SVT Dalarna has sought a comment from the infrastructure minister on the demand for the crisis fund.