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Forest for Energy, Environment and Cooperation
Start date: Dec 1, 2015, End date: Nov 30, 2017 PROJECT  FINISHED 

In most European countries a considerable part of forest land is owned by private owners, it is an important resource, offering multiple ways of use in industrial, energetic or conservational aspects. Forest owners have key role in sustainable use of these resources. Due to climate changes, instability in prices of fossil energy carriers and problems with their supply, interest in wood as a source of renewable energy has grown significantly. Number and efficiency of district heating boilers and CHP plants using wood has also grown. Though, due to unstable demand and supply the procurement of energy wood is causing situation, where it is not possible to build a stable wood-based energy production in sufficient volume. Forest owners have cooperated in most European countries, mostly in forest owner associations or energy cooperatives. In Estonia about 8000 forest owners have united in different cooperatives, but currently there is no active energy cooperative in Estonia. In the future united and informed forest owners can set the base for sustainable and stable supply of wood energy. The role of Private Forest Centre (PFC), as the organization developing and training the support system in Estonian private forestry, is to raise the knowledge of actors in support system and through this the private forest owners in Estonia, also to foster cooperation. During the project study visits to renewable energy companies and energy cooperatives in Germany, Italy and Bulgaria are arranged. There is 4 persons planned to participate in study visits, target group is the management and members of development unit in PFC, who are active in creating a education and training plan for actors in support system of private forestry in Estonia. This enables the most efficient use and implementation of knowledge gained during the study visits. Main objectives of the planned project are: 1. Raising the knowledge of the key actors in PFC in the field of renewable energy, to guarantee the implementation of information through efficient training plan for private forestry support system 2. Raising the awareness of forest owners and actors in private forestry support system in the field of wood energy and energy cooperatives through future trainings and implementation activities. 3. Using the knowledge and best practices from partner countries to foster development of energy cooperatives based on forest owner associations. In the long term, the project can contribute to reaching the goals of EU 2020 energy objectives, to increase energy security in Estonia, to foster knowledge-based development and international cooperation in Estonian private forestry. The project also raises the quality of training programs provided to the actors in support system of private forestry by PFC.
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