Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

Evolution of forest cover in Portugal: A review of the 12th–20th centuries

  • Review Article
  • Published:
Journal of Forestry Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Portugal’s forests in the 12th century were dominated by the Fagaceae represented by Quercus and Castanea, and several pine species. From the 12th century onwards, forests underwent changes in their management starting with protection and ultimately leading to intense exploitation. The massive naval construction during the maritime expansion (mainly in the 15th–16th centuries) involved felling of approximately 5 million trees mainly Quercus suber, Pinus pinea and other Quercus species. Cumulative fuel-wood consumption of 959 Mm3 during 1300–1854 was attributed to demographic expansion while the deforestation rate during 1636–1854 accounted for a minimum of 72.6% and a maximum of 96% of total forest cover. The volume of timber used in railway sleepers from 1856 onwards might have reached 0.5 Mm3. The last quarter of the 20th century increased the forest cover of Portugal through the World Bank program of Eucalyptus globulus reforestation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+
from $39.99 /Month
  • Starting from 10 chapters or articles per month
  • Access and download chapters and articles from more than 300k books and 2,500 journals
  • Cancel anytime
View plans

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles and news from researchers in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.

References

  • Autoridade Florestal Nacional. 2010. 5.° Inventário Florestal Nacional. Apresentação do Relatório Final (5th National Forest Inventory. Final Report Presentation). Setembro, p.14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Andrada e Silva JB. 1969. Memória sobre a necessidade e utilidades do plantio de novos bosques em Portugal (Memo about the need and utility of planting new forests in Portugal). 2a Edição, Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, p.171.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baeta-Neves CML. 1980. História florestal, aquícola e cinegética. Colectânea de documentos existentes no Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo. (History of forestry, freshwater and hunting. Document collection existing in the National Archives of Torre do Tombo). Chancelarias Reais. Ministério da Agricultura, Florestas e Alimentação, Vol. I, Lisboa, p.316.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baeta-Neves CML. 1982. uHistória florestal, aquícola e cinegética. Colectânea de documentos existentes no Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo (History of forestry, freshwater and hunting. Document collection existing in the National Archives of Torre do Tombo). Chancelarias Reais. Ministério da Agricultura, Florestas e Alimentação, Vol. II, Lisboa, p. 257.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baeta-Neves CML. 1983. História florestal, aquícola e cinegética. Colectânea de documentos existentes no Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo (History of forestry, freshwater and hunting. Document collection existing in the National Archives of Torre do Tombo). Chancelarias Reais. Ministério da Agricultura, Florestas e Alimentação, Vol. IV, Lisboa. p.342.

    Google Scholar 

  • Conselho Nacional do Ambiente e do Desenvolvimento Sustentável. 2001. “Reflexão sobre a sustentabilidade da política florestal Nacional” Relatório de Trabalho (Reflexion about the sustainability of the national forest policy. Work report), p.100.

    Google Scholar 

  • Costa LF. 1997. A indústria. A construção naval. In: História de Portugal. No alvorecer da Modernidade (The industry. Shipbuilding. In: Portugal’s history. At the dawn of modernity) vol III (Coordenação J.R. Magalhães), Editorial Estampa, Lisboa, pp. 261–278.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cruz S. 2012. Elementos constituintes da superestrutura da via (The components of the track superstructure). Refer, Engenharia de Infraestruturas, 5–14. Available at: http://adfer.cp.pt/ferxxi/ed21/pdf/05.pdf . [Assessed March, 2012]

    Google Scholar 

  • Daveau S. 1988. Notas e Recensões. Progressos recentes no conhecimento da evolução holocénica da cobertura vegetal em Portugal e nas regiões vizinhas (Recent progress in the knowledge of the Holocene evolution of the forest cover in Portugal and neighbour regions). Finisterra (Lisboa), XXIII, 45: 101–115.

    Google Scholar 

  • Devy-Vareta N. 1985. Para uma geografia histórica da floresta Portuguesa. As matas medievais e a “coutada velha” do rei (For a historical geography of the Portuguese forest. Medieval forests and king’s old hunting ground). Revista da Faculdade de Letras — Geografia, I Série, Vol. I, Porto, 47–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Devy-Vareta N. 1986. tPara uma geografia histórica da floresta Portuguesa. Do declínio das matas medievais à política florestal do Renascimento (Séc. XV e XVI) (For a historical geography of the Portuguese forest. From the decline of medieval forests to the forest policy of Renaissance). Revista da Faculdade de Letras — Geografia, I Série, Vol. I, Porto, 5–37.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dicionário de História de Portugal. 1992. Vols. I–IV, dirigido por Joel Serrão, Livraria Figueirinhas (Porto).

    Google Scholar 

  • Domingues FC. 2004. Os navios do mar oceano. Teoria e empiria na arquitectura naval Portuguesa dos séculos XVI e XVII (Ocean vessels. Theory and empirism in the Portuguese navy’s architecture in 16th and 17th centuries), Lisboa, Centro de História da Universidade de Lisboa.

    Google Scholar 

  • European Environment Agency. 2006. European forest types, European Environment Agency, Technical Report no 9, Copenhagen, 111 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Fernow BE. 1907. History of Forestry in Europe, the United States and other countries. University Press, Toronto, Ontario, 464 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Garcia JCS. 1986. O Espaço medieval da reconquista no sudoeste da Península Ibérica (The medieval space of the reconquest of the southwest of Iberian peninsula). Lisboa. Centro de Estudos Geográficos. Col. Chorographia, Série Histórica — Estudos e Documentos Comentados, n° 2, 130 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Germano MA. 2004. Regime Florestal. Um Século de Existência (Forestry regimen. A century of existence). Direcção Geral dos Recursos Florestais. Lisboa, p.167.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guinote P. 2003. India Route Project: Ascensão e Declínio da Carreira da Índia (Rise and decline of India route), World Wide Web, URL, http://nautarch.tamu.edu/shiplab/, Nautical Archaeology Program, Texas A&M University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gunes Y, Elvan OD. 2005. Illegal logging activities in Turkey. Environmental Management, 36: 220–229.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Henderson-Howat DB. 1996. Great-Britain. In: Long-term historical changes in the forest resource. Chapter 4, 23–26. Geneva Timber and Forest Study Papers No 10, UNECE/FAO, p.65.

    Google Scholar 

  • IFN6, 2013. 6o Inventário Florestal Nacional. Áreas dos usos do solo e das espécies florestais de Portugal continental. Resultados preliminares, (6th National Forest Inventory. Areas of soil and forestry species uses in mainland Portugal. Preliminary results) Fevereiro 2013, Ministério da Agricultura, do Mar, do Ambiente e do Ordenamento do Território, Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas.

    Google Scholar 

  • INE. 2012. Estatísticas Agrícolas 2011 (Agricultural Statistics 2011). INE, I.P., Lisboa, Portugal, 170 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lourenço C. 1990. A floresta Portuguesa e os descobrimentos marítimos. (Portuguese forest and the maritime discoveries) Academia da Marinha. Lisboa. p.11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Magalhães JAR. 1970. Para o estudo do Algarve económico durante o século XVI (For the study of economic Algarve during the 16th century), Edições Cosmos, Lisboa, p.288.

    Google Scholar 

  • Magalhães JR. 1997. O enquadramento do espaço nacional. In: História de Portugal. No alvorecer da Modernidade (1480–1620) (The framework of the national territory. In: Portugal’s history. At the dawn of modernity, 1480–1620) Vol III (Coordenação J.R. Magalhães), Editorial Estampa, Lisboa, pp.19–59.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malanima P. 2006. Energy crisis and growth 1650–1850: the European deviation in a comparative perspective. Journal of Global History, 1: 101–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marinha The Navy story. Available atL http://www.marinha.pt/pt/amarinha/historia/historiadamarinha/pages . [Assessed February 2012]

  • Moreira MAF. 1984. O porto de Viana do Castelo na época dos descobrimentos (Viana do Castelo harbour in the epoch of the discoveries). Edição da Câmara Municipal de Viana do Castelo. 172 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morin GA. 1996. France. In: Long-term historical changes in the forest resource. Chapter 3, 19–22. Geneva Timber and Forest Study Papers No 10, UNECE/FAO, 65 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pais J. 1989. Evolução do coberto florestal em Portugal no Neogénico e no Quaternário (Forest cover evolution in Portugal during the Neogene and Quaternary). Comunicações dos Serviços Geológicos de Portugal, 75: 67–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pais J. 1996. Paleoetnobotânica (finais séc. XI a séc. XIII–XIV) do Sul de Portugal — Setúbal, Mértola e Silves (Palaeo-ethnobotany of south of Portugal — Setúbal, Mértola and Silves). Arqueologia Medieval, Mértola, 4: 277–282.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paiva J. 2003. A floresta Portuguesa. (I) História da Silva Lusitana. (The Portuguese forest. Lusitanian Silva history) Floresta e Ambiente, 62:15–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Radich MC, Baptista FO. 2005. Floresta e sociedade: Um percurso (1875–2005) (Forest and society. A route, 1875–2005). Silva Lusitana, 13:143–157.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rebello da Silva LA. 1868. Memória sobre a população e a agricultura de Portugal: Desde a fundação da monarquia até 1865 (Memo about the population and agriculture in Portugal. From monarchy foundation until 1865). Lisboa, Imprensa Nacional, p.335.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reboredo F, Pais J. 2012. A construção naval e a destruição do coberto florestal em Portugal. Do século XII ao século XX (Shipbuilding and destruction of forest cover. From 12th to 20th centuries). Ecologia (Revista online da Sociedade Portuguesa de Ecologia), 4: 31–42.

    Google Scholar 

  • REFER ( www.refer.pt/MenuPrincipal/TransporteFerroviario/Lexico.aspx ) Assessed March, 2012.

  • Rego FC. 2001. Florestas Públicas (Public Forests). Direcção Geral das Florestas/Comissão Nacional Especializada de Fogos Florestais, Lisboa, p.105.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reich PB, Frelich L. 2002. Temperate deciduous forests. Vol. 2 “The earth system: biological and ecological dimensions of global environment change”. In: H.A. Mooney and J.G. Canadell (eds), Encyclopedia of Global Environmental Change. pp. 565–569.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ribeiro C, Delgado JFNE. 1868. Relatório àcêrca da Arborização Geral do Paiz (Report about the General Arborization of the country), Ministério das Obras Publicas, Commercio e Industria. Typographia da Academia Real das Sciencias, Lisboa.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saito O. 2009. Forest history and the great divergence: China, Japan and the West compared. Journal of Global History, 4: 379–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sousa A. 1997. Condicionalismos Básicos. In: História de Portugal. A Monarquia Feudal (1096–1480) (Basic constraints. In: Portugal’s history. The feudal monarchy, 1096–1480) Vol II (Coordenação J. Mattoso), Editorial Estampa, Lisboa, pp. 263–326.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vieira JAN. 1991. Arborização e desarborização em Portugal (Arborization and deforestation in Portugal). DGF Informação, 8: 9–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Warde P. 2006. Fear of wood shortage and the reality of the woodland in Europe, 1450–1850. History Workshop Journal, 62: 29–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wickham C. 1990. European forests in the early middle ages: Landscapes and land clearance. Paper presented at the XXXVII Settimana di Studio del Centro Italiano sull’Alto Medioevo, 30 March–5 April 1989, Spoleto: pp.479–545.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, CICEGe, Departmento de Ciências da Terra, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 2829-516, Caparica, Portugal

    Fernando Reboredo & João Pais

Authors
  1. Fernando Reboredo
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

  2. João Pais
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fernando Reboredo.

Additional information

Corresponding editor: Chai Ruihai

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Reboredo, F., Pais, J. Evolution of forest cover in Portugal: A review of the 12th–20th centuries. Journal of Forestry Research 25, 249–256 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-014-0456-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-014-0456-z

Keywords