On a Sunday, I set off with my friend Victor Menaschez, the greatest sportsman from Cârlibaba, towards Lake Lala – a glacial lake in the Rodna Mountains, at an altitude of almost 2000 meters – the most popular tourist destination in our area. We choose to ascend the Lala Stream trail, as it is the most beautiful, through an ancient forest, interspersed with meadows, until higher up where the landscape changes – the path ascends along the edge of the water past some waterfalls, through an area of dwarf pine until the shore of the lake – a place like Mount Olympus, a small lake with the mountain slopes behind it like an amphitheater.
The trail starts 10 km west from the village of Cârlibaba and the hike takes us about 4 or 5 hours round trip from the parking lot at the end of the forest road. But not this Sunday! When we arrive at the entrance to the national park, the forest road is closed with barriers and a padlock, and not just that – many signs make it clear that entry is strictly forbidden, a logging company has closed the entrance to the national park. We ignore their signs and go on our way to the lake, but we know we have at least 2 extra hours of walking and I keep wondering – how can this be, why is no one paying attention that someone is closing the entrance to a national park, foreign tourists would surely change their plans. On account of a company that with such an attitude not only harms the country's interests in tourism but also raises suspicion that what is happening there is not for the public eye.
On another day, I head of for the lake again and meet at the barriers with a group of foresters from Brașov who also want to hike to the lake. I tell them they have a long way to go because of the barrier, but they tell me not to worry, they know the forester and he’s coming to open the barrier for them. However, when they see me taking pictures of the signs with the forbidden entry, they realize I’m not part of their category of "nature lovers" and hide in their car. When I think about it, I also know the forester, but I am not calling upon him for a privilege; we no longer live in an era where only the elite have access to national parks. I am looking for a solution for all those who want to hike the trail. What should I tell foreign tourists – that in Romania the "strictly forbidden entry" signs don’t matter? What can I explain about the barriers and the extra kilometers? Touristic Romania is like a village without dogs (a Romanian saying), it is an empty phrase at both national and local levels – no one really takes care of tourist interests. I went to the town hall, called the national park, talked to the foresters – but the barrier remains closed.
One particularity, however, needs to be explained – due to historical reasons and restitutions, the Cârlibaba Forestry District has a fairly limited area, whereas those from Bistrița County and Maramureș County have jurisdiction over the mountains all the way to our village, and whatever they don't do at home, they do here. Probably, the entrances to the national park from their side are better arranged, but as for Cârlibaba – who cares?
So far, I have kind of avoided the topic of the forest due to the fact that I have friends in the field, whom I respect for their knowledge of flora and fauna. On the other hand, international newspapers (der Spiegel) and local activists have clearly described the deforestation and theft in the forest, so I don't know what another article from me would mean – I believe we are all aware that forest management is still not as it should be. But instead of an attack, I would like to write this article dedicated to the foresters: you are all educated men, I trust you will take this article for what it is meant – something must change! Abroad, foresters and forest services play a role in facilitating tourism; in Romania, the Forestry District puts up barriers.
I am not a hardcore environmentalist; I love nature but also understand that people need to live, and since we live in the forest, it's logical to use wood. If I compare it to the Netherlands, there the forest disappeared long ago – the name Holland comes from Holtland, the land of wood – but the forest was cut down until only fields remained. In this idea, I recognize that a country in its development process has the right to use its natural resources, but do it wisely! Look at the difference: the Netherlands cut down its forests in the 17th century to build the naval fleet with which they created an empire, Romania cuts down its forests to make pressed sawdust or construction wood for others. The added economic value is zero. In Romania, there is no longer any production of furniture, wooden carpentry, or boats – the wood leaves the country unprocessed. The only ones who profit are those who cut down the trees and those who allow them to be cut down! And so, you have come to sell gold at the price of sawdust! There was another phase in Romanian history when factories were sold for scrap metal prices; the forest couldn't be sold as quickly, so here we still have a chance to stop.
Among the foresters, I have noticed that they have adopted a narrative, a jargon of cover-up. I remember a discussion in which the forest management system inherited from the Austrians was explained to me, which stipulates that a forest must be completely cut (clear-cut) and replanted after 80 years. I wondered – "Really?" It seemed strange to invoke a colonial method used 100 years ago by a country that no longer cuts anything at home to defend the methods used now in Romania. "Yes, sir, but a tree is no longer efficient after 80 years..."Isn’t it?" Maybe for you... "It no longer produces oxygen!" "You can’t be serious!" Luckily, the Romanian forestry officials didn’t reach the tropical forests, which are called the lungs of the earth, where you won’t find a tree younger than 80 years! The last remark after which I withdrew from the discussion was "anyway, the forest regenerates immediately." Especially if you leave everything in total disorder after you finish the job...
Romania is not a fir plantation; it is a country where we all have to live – a country with a history, a cultural landscape. You cannot just subject Romania to your exploitation model...
I have a map, a paper one, that I still use when I travel around the country – because the beautiful routes, the tourist routes, are marked with a green line next to the road – and that’s how the DN 18 road passing through Cârlibaba is marked. Indeed, it was an extremely beautiful road with tree branches next to the asphalt – until three years ago. Then a terrible accident happened nearby where someone died – during a storm, a tree fell on a family's car. But instead of dealing with the dead or rotten trees along the road, something they had neglected for years, an order was given to cut down all the trees within a 30-meter radius to reduce the danger. How deeply the people in the timber sector were emotionally affected by the accident that created the opportunity to cut down thousands of cubic meters. Now, where there was a green line on my map, there is an area like a no man's land; you look at the bare tree trunks, and since the forest has lost its natural protection with the edge cut down, any gust of wind knocks down another row of trees, and guess who profits from the fallen wood
There is still much more to say – up at Rotunda Pass near the other entrance to the park, a forest over 80 years old was clear-cut (if trees stop producing oxygen) right at the edge of the Rodna Mountains National Park. About the nocturnal transport of large round timber that speeds through our village, I wonder if it's a type of wood that can't withstand light. It’s quite painfull – and I have no one else to turn to but you – the foresters.
I understand that you work all your life for the same club, you wear the clubs clothers and badges, it's like an old boys networkBut I challenge you – haven't you noticed it's a club without rules, haven't you seen it's a collective without solidarity, that some dubious members, some higher up take advantage of the power they have. Isn't it better than loyalty to a shady club to choose the right path? You manage the largest forest in Europe, which could attract a large number of tourists – Romania could benefit from their money, surely tourism would bring in more than sawdust. Countries like Austria and Switzerland understood this sooner, where the tourism sector is much larger than the timber sector
To be a forester in the Carpathian forests, to work in nature and to guard the country's natural wealth against impostors seems to me a position of honor. But if you „side with the bear” (Romanian saying) and refuse to clean up the "dry wood in the forest," (Romanian saying) after a lifetime as a forester, you will leave behind a scarred landscape, wouldn't it be a shame! If you don't choose a more fair and sustainable future, and you remain complicit with the current timber policy, I'll tell you a Dutch saying – you're shooting yourself in the foot, or rather, in the feet of your children and grandchildren!
