ABSTRACT
The Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have undergone drastic upheaval in their political systems during the last century. The Baltic States were independent nations between the two world wars; otherwise, their recent history was as part of Tsarist Russia and later the Soviet Union. Changes in economic systems and land tenure, from the centrally planned economy of the Soviet Union to the free market and private ownership of today’s newly independent states, significantly affected landuse, especially the balance between forestry and agriculture. In all the Baltic States, large areas of agricultural land were abandoned during the last decade and are available for afforestation. Although afforestation was practiced in the Baltic States for nearly a century, the past decade since independence has been the most active period. Mining operations also result in areas open to reclamation. Many abandoned areas are undergoing old-field succession following natural invasion by pioneer hardwood species such as birches, alders, aspens, and willows.
