Continued increase in infringement compensation

Nyhet | Statistik - 04 February 2025

In 2024, the Swedish Forest Agency paid out nearly SEK 324 million in infringement compensation to landowners for denied felling permission in montane forests. This marks a continued increase since 2020, when the first compensation payments totaling SEK 3 million were issued. At the same time, the area designated for the establishment of formally protected areas by the Swedish Forest Agency decreased in 2024 to the lowest level since 1996.

In 2020, a legal process was concluded, leading to the Swedish Forest Agency beginning to compensate landowners who had been denied felling permission in montane forests. That year, only a few infringement compensation payments were issued, but in the following years the number of payments increased significantly. The main reason for this was a sharp rise in applications for felling permits in montane forests.

Amount of compensation payment for infringement by Swedish Forest Agency to landowners who had been denied felling permission in montane forests distributed per year.

• 2021 - SEK 72 million
• 2022 - SEK 248 million
• 2023 - SEK 309 million
• 2024 - SEK 324 million

In total, infringement compensation has been paid out for the denied felling of 25,200 hectares of forest land in the montane forests between 2020 and 2024. In 2024, landowners were compensated for 8,500 hectares of denied felling in montane forests (Figure 1 below).

Västerbotten county has accounted for almost 65 percent of the infringement compensated forest land up to 2024, while 33 percent was in Jämtland county. The remaining proportion was distributed between the counties of Dalarna and Norrbotten.

The forest areas that the Swedish Forest Agency has compensated for infringement are not formally protected in the same way as the habitat protection areas and nature conservation agreements. A more detailed description of these three forms of protection can be found under the "Description" section below.

New formal protection at their lowest level since 1996

In 2024, 570 hectares of habitat protection and 140 hectares of nature conservation agreements were established. Overall, this was the lowest level of newly formally protected areas by the Swedish Forest Agency since 1996. It is also the sixth consecutive year in which less than 1,500 hectares have been formally protected. The years with the highest levels of new formation were between 2002 and 2005, when approximately 6,000 hectares per year were formally protected (Figure 1).

As of December 31, 2024, the Swedish Forest Agency has designated nearly 9,000 habitat protection areas, covering a total of 35,400 hectares. At the same time, the agency has entered into more than 5,500 nature conservation agreements, encompassing over 40,000 hectares (excluding eco-park and white-backed woodpecker agreements).

One of the key reasons for the decline in newly protected areas in the 2020s is that the Swedish Forest Agency has had to allocate the majority of its appropriation to compensation payments for landowners applying for logging permits in montane forests, where permits are often denied.

New “Waiting Agreements” for compensation

Since 1 January 2024 Swedish Forest Agency has been offering property owners a waiting agreement (väntansavtal) pending formal protection, and these are also included in the statistics. Since waiting agreements for formal protection are signed early in the process of an initiated case, it is not determined whether the final designation will be a habitat protection area or nature conservation agreement. The standard duration of a waiting agreement is two years, during which the landowner refrains from forestry activities within the designated area. Compensation is provided at the time of signing, but entering into a waiting agreement does not obligate the establishment of formal protection.

By the end of 2024, 42 waiting agreement had been signed, covering 239 hectares, with a total compensation payment of SEK 280 000.

Total Compensation Payments: SEK 3.8 Billion

Since 1993, the Swedish Forest Agency has paid out SEK 3.2 billion for the creation of habitat protection areas and SEK 571 million for nature conservation agreements. In 2024, the average compensation for habitat protection reached SEK 201,000 per hectare, the highest level per hectare to date. The rising cost of real estate has contributed to an increase in compensation per hectare over time.

For nature conservation agreements, the average compensation in 2024 was approximately SEK 43,000 per hectare, a decrease compared to the previous year but still higher than earlier years. Compensation varies based on factors such as the timber value of the land, location, and the length of the agreement. Generally, shorter agreements have lower compensation, meaning a high number of short-term agreements in a given year can reduce the average compensation.

Discontinued formally protected areas

Some of the habitat protection areas and nature conservation agreements are repealed if, for example, a nature reserve is established for the land area for which they apply and if the agreement for a nature conservation agreement reaches the end of its contract period.

The statistics about current protected areas do not include protected areas that have ceased. 

By the end of 2024, 55 habitat protection areas have ceased, consisting of 187 hectares and with a compensation of SEK 7,9 million. In addition, 59 nature conservation agreements have ceased, consisting of 254 hectares and a compensation of SEK 3,5 million.

Description

The appropriation allocated to the Swedish Forestry Agency for establishing new habitat protection and nature conservation agreements also includes infringement compensation for rejected felling in montane forests.

Infringement compensation is paid to landowners who have applied for a permit but have been refused felling in montane forests, due to the presence of high biodiversity in the montane region.

Infringement compensation according to above includes payments up to and including 31 December 2024.

Habitat protection areas include decided areas up to and including 31 December 2024, including non-legally binding decisions unless otherwise stated.

The nature conservation agreements include signed agreements, excluding areas included in white-backed and ecopark agreements. The statistics refer to agreements that were in force at the end of December 2024.

A habitat protection area is a statutory way to protect small areas of great importance for flora and fauna. The reimbursement to the landowner corresponds to the decline in market value of the land plus 25 percent.

The nature conservation agreement is a civil and time-limited agreement. The compensation varies depending on how long the contract is valid. The time can vary between one and fifty years. For a 50-year agreement, the landowner receives 60 percent of the area's net conversion value in compensation.

A waiting agreement implies that the property owners refrain from forestry during the period. The agreement period for this form of agreements is normally two years. Entering into a waiting agreement does not mean that formal protection will be formed. The grant that the Swedish Forestry Agency allocates to form new biotope protection and nature conservation agreements also includes compensation for waiting agreements.

It is the first year that this publication includes an account of the biotope protection areas and nature conservation agreements that have ceased to apply.

Habitat protection areas and nature conservation agreements are also formed by other government authorities and municipalities. The statistics presented here do not therefore give a complete picture of these instruments, only the formal protection signed by the Swedish Forest Agency. There are also other types of formally protected forest land, for example nature reserves. Complete statistics for all protected forest land is given by Statistics Sweden and the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency later in the spring, in the publication Protected Nature.

For both forms of protection, no overlap analysis against other types of formal protection have been made.

The survey is part of Official Statistics of Sweden.