With its largely softwood forests, the Czech Republic is one of the European countries most affected by the ongoing bark beetle calamity. According to some reports, the area affected by bark beetle is likely to reach some 66,000 hectares this year.
About 30 million cubic metres of timber is estimated to have been lost due to the bark beetle. That figure is nearly double than the 18 million reported in 2018, which saw the most costly bark beetle calamity in two centuries.
The current bark beetle crisis is said to be the worst to ever hit the forestry industry. Due to the drop in timber prices, logging costs often rise above sale prices, adding that that the fight against the calamity and the subsequent reforestation is becoming nearly impossible to finance.