A NATIONAL PLAN FOB AMERICAN FORESTRY 1023 



up to 4 an acre. Cutting may be prohibited altogether where it is 

 desirable to reserve the trees for scenic reasons, in which case the 

 owner is to be compensated. The Minister has the power to buy out 

 any grazing rights or rights to dig turf which may interfere with forest 

 conservation. General permits, which may be issued for definite 

 periods, may allow cutting that is in accordance with good forest 

 practice. 



ITALY 32 



State intervention in the handling of private forests in Italy is 

 justified chiefly on the grounds of public welfare involved in the pro- 

 tection of soil and control of water. Three fifths of the Italian forests 

 are privatelv owned, mostly in small tracts. In general, owners are 

 not required to give notice or to obtain permission for ordinary cutting 

 in their forests, nor are they obliged to follow management plans. 

 They may not, however, clear forest land for another form of use with- 

 out the permission of the provincial forest organization. If a forest is 

 being utilized in a manner which threatens its existence, the forest 

 authorities (forest militia) may prescribe the method of use or sus- 

 pend exploitation altogether. 



The 1923 law provides for a forest commission in each province 

 consisting of the forest inspector or his deputy, a civil engineer, an 

 agricultural expert, and an expert on mountain problems chosen by the 

 Minister of National Economy, two members nominated by the pro- 

 vincial council, and a special representative from each commune to 

 sit with the commission when dealing with matters affecting his own 

 commune. 



Lands where the destruction of the forest, brush, or other cover will 

 lead to erosion of the soil or will disturb the flow of streams, to the 

 injury of the public, are to be classified by the commissions, upon 

 application of the forest service or other interested party, as protected 

 or ban forests. Such land may be cleared for cultivation or other use 

 only with the consent of the forest militia, and in the manner pre- 

 scribed by it. When the clearing of mountain land is permitted, the 

 slope must be reduced to not more than 20 percent by means of ter- 

 racing, and canals must be built to carry off the surface drainage 

 without washing. The method of using the timber and forage is also 

 to be prescribed, including season and method of cutting, length 

 of coppice rotation, use and control of fire, control of insects, and time 

 and intensity of grazing. An owner must notify the forest authorities 

 in case of insect or disease outbreak threatening to destroy his own 

 forest or to spread to other forests. Goats may not be grazed on pro- 

 tected areas, nor any stock on reproduction areas until the young 

 trees are old enough to escape injury, nor in poorly stocked forests 

 until reproduction is assured. Where it is necessary for the re vegeta- 

 tion or stabilization of the soil of protected areas, all grazing may be 

 suspended for a maximum period of 10 years. Any diminution of 

 revenue is to be allowed for in assessing the land for taxation. 



Forests which protect land or buildings from avalanches, falling 

 rocks, drifting sand, and winds; or those which should be preserved for 



32 Riordinaraento e riforma della legislazione in materia di boschi e di terreni montani, Regio decreto, 30 

 dicembre 1923, no. 3267. Liberia dello Stato, Rome, 1924. Also amendment in Regio decreto-legge, 3 gen- 

 naio 1926, no. 23. 



Merendi, Ariberto, manuscript report in files of Forest Service. 1932. . 



Pailli6, M., " Rapport sur 1'intervention de 1'Etat dans la gestion des forPts particulieres d apres quelques 

 legislations recentes." In Actes Congres Internationale de Sylviculture, vol. 3, pp. 32-53. Rome, 1926. 



