STOCKHOLM More than two-thirds of Sweden is covered by trees, and that s turning the country into a battleground between loggers and climate activists.
The spark is the EU s new Forest Strategy, published earlier this month. It aims to boost biodiversity, limit burning trees for energy, protect remaining old growth forests from logging and plant 3 billion trees as part of the bloc s effort to slash emissions on the path to its Green Deal goal of becoming climate neutral by 2050.
Despite assurances from the European Commission that it isn t trying to dictate forest policy to member countries, the strategy has set off a furious row in Sweden.