Bark beetles decimating High Tatra forests

Precious forests are dying out in the High Tatra Mountains due to an extreme outbreak of bark beetle related to the November 2004 windstorm, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Gabriela Matečná stated on Tuesday. Matečná warned that the decline of forests - not only those hit by the windstorm - also results into soil erosion and desiccation of water resources. Moreover, if action isn't taken, forests from the affected areas will disappear for several decades. "We've been sitting back and looking how our Tatra forests are literally dying before our eyes. As a result of the invasion by the bark beetle, soil erosion also appears in the dry dead forest, apart from the drying out of forest wells and mountain streams. It's about time to act," said Matečná. "We must outmatch the bark beetle and find it active in trees. This is the key for helping the nature," said Ján Slivinský from the Tatra National Park (TANAP) State Forests. Meanwhile, Matečná announced that she wants to initiate a roundtable debate involving forestry experts and environmentalists. She noted that the decline of forests in High Tatras also significantly affects the environment for the existing sanatoria for treatment of respiratory diseases. One spruce annually produces oxygen for 50 people. "The Tatra mountain forests are among Slovakia's symbols," added the minister.