Wet-storage facility aims to protect damaged timber in Zwettl

A new wet-storage facility in the Zwettl district is designed to help forest owners preserve the value of damaged timber when large quantities cannot be sold quickly, ORF reports. The facility, built by the Lower Austrian Forest Association, can hold 15,000 cubic metres of timber, or about 500 truckloads.

Forest owner Franz Stöger, who has suffered losses from bark beetle damage, says prices can collapse when storms or pests force large amounts of timber onto the market. If sawmills cannot take the wood promptly, it may be left in the forest, where its quality can deteriorate as supply pushes prices down.

Stöger is currently removing a spruce from his mixed forest near Stixendorf in the Krems district because he suspects it is infested by bark beetles. He says drought has also damaged trees, with young plants drying out and older pines dying.

In one severe period about 10 years ago, Stöger had to harvest around 2,000 cubic metres of spruce. He said the timber initially sold, but prices later fell so sharply that forest owners were sometimes fortunate just to cover harvesting costs.

Lower Austria recorded about 3.28 million cubic metres of damaged timber in 2019, nearly 62 percent of its total harvest. In 2025, the figure was about 890,000 cubic metres, or around 23 percent, a decrease of roughly 73 percent. Official figures for 2026 are not yet available. The Forest Association does not currently expect bark beetle damage on a scale that would affect the timber market.

The facility at Thumling, near Martinsberg in the Zwettl district, opened in October. Timber can be kept wet there to help prevent drying, cracks and discolouration, preserving its quality until it can be sold. The facility is currently empty, by design, the association’s chairman, Franz Fischer, said, as it is intended for future large-scale damage events.