Under the model, more retention trees and high biodiversity stumps are left per hectare of forest during felling. As concerns valuable habitats and littoral forests, the model represents the highest level of requirements currently in use.
To accelerate the creation of decaying wood and to secure the living conditions of species that inhabit burnt environments, more retention tree groups will be burned. Metsä Group reserves the right to burn the groups of retention trees left on Metsä Group Plus sites before establishing a new forest. The goal is to increase the amount of burnt wood in forests, which is currently insufficient for the species that need it.
From 1 September 2024, clear-cutting of lush, drained, spruce-dominated peatlands will be replaced by continuous covered methods, i.e. group selection or selection cutting and drainage ditches are not repaired in connection with fellings. Buffer zones around waterbodies meet the highest requirements in use also on lush peatlands.
The Metsä Group Plus service follows the principles of regenerative forestry and contributes to increasing the biodiversity and vitality of Finnish forests year by year so that they are always transferred in better condition from one generation to the next. The management model helps forest owners respect nature values and promote a sustainable multi-generational approach even better when pursuing forestry.
In the Metsä Group Plus model, the forest owner decides separately for each wood trade and order for young stand management whether they want to choose the Plus model and its more comprehensive measures. Because owner-members choose the Metsä Group Plus measures separately for each transaction, the results of their choices can be seen in the forest as soon as work begins.
Metsä Group pays an additional bonus per hectare for regeneration felling carried out according to the terms of the Metsä Group Plus service. From 1 September 2024, the additional Metsä Group Plus bonus will be paid also for felling on lush peatlands if continuous cover methods – group selection or selection cutting – are adopted instead of clear cutting.
The additional bonus compensates the owner-members for the wood trade income lost because of the service. The additional bonus is similar to the bonus accumulated for wood trades and forest management service sales. The bonus can be used to pay for forest management work, or it can be paid along with the next wood trade.