“Despite the energy crisis: collecting wood in the forest is theft,” warns the RV insurance company. The forest owners in MV have so far not noticed any major thieves.
Schwerin (dpa/mv) – In the current energy crisis, firewood has also become significantly more expensive. For example, the Holz-Maxe company with locations in Güstrow and Röbel currently charges 140 euros for one cubic meter of ready-dried oak logs. A year ago, the price was less than 100 euros, as an employee reported.
As an alternative, going into the forest and simply picking up wood and taking it with you is not a good idea, according to the RV insurance company. “Every forest belongs to someone. It is usually privately owned or owned by the municipalities, the federal government or the states. And that also applies to the wood,” explains Michael Rempel, a lawyer at RV Versicherung. It doesn’t matter whether it’s broken branches, cut logs or trees that have fallen over after a storm.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, wood theft has not yet been noticed as a major problem as a result of the galloping energy prices. So far this year, the State Forestry Agency has identified the theft of 6.7 cubic meters of wood, as a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Agriculture in Schwerin told the German Press Agency. At the beginning of January, the theft of one cubic meter of wood was noticed in the Schlemmin forestry office. The damage amounted to 18 euros, it was said. In May, foresters in the same forest office determined that 9.34 cubic meters had been lost. The damage this time: 607.10 euros.
The total of 10.34 cubic meters corresponds to around 6.7 cubic meters. “The amount is manageable and currently does not represent a major problem for the state forest institute,” said the ministry spokeswoman. Around 42 percent of the forests in MV are state-owned. The Forest Owners Association of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, which represents private and corporate owners such as municipalities or churches, said that wood theft has not been a serious problem so far.
