Every family will find a Christmas tree from the state forest 09.12

Every family can bring home a Christmas tree from the state forest this year; instructions are available from the RMK website and in the updated mobile app.

Before heading out to find a Christmas tree from the state forest, RMK suggests visiting the special website www.rmk.ee/kuuseke where a web map shows the state forest areas or places where you can look for a Christmas tree. In addition, the website includes instructions and conditions for felling a Christmas tree and caring for it at home.

According to Toomas Väät, Silviculture Head Specialist of RMK, the most important thing when bringing home a Christmas tree from the state forest is ensuring that you are in a state forest, not a protected area or a young growth. State forests are identified on the RMK website via the public forest register and the updated RMK mobile app. “This year, the update included entering the whole state forest into the RMK mobile app, so a smartphone user could position himself in the forest and ensure that he still is in the state forest,” Väät explained.

Once a suitable tree has been found, it can be paid for right on the spot using the mobile app. Another option is to pay via bank transfer in the Internet bank before heading out to the forest. Christmas trees of one to three metres in height cost from EUR 3 to EUR 13. To prove their cutting right, the person must bring along the payment order to the forest; either a respective SMS confirmation of the payment in their mobile phone or a payment order printout.

The RMK mobile app is free and can be downloaded for iPhone, Android, and Windows smartphones. The mobile app contains all of the necessary instructions for acquiring a Christmas tree, information on the payment options, and instructions for caring for the tree.

During the holidays last year, a total of 7,600 Christmas trees were brought home from RMK forests, which is 500 more than the year before.

RMK is a profit-making state agency established under the Forestry Act, aimed at the sustainable and efficient management of state forests. RMK grows reforestation material, organises forest works, executes practical nature protection works and is engaged in forest and timber sales. Additionally, RMK establishes opportunities for nature walking and forest holidays in recreation areas, in Estonia’s five national parks and almost 40 other protected areas, and shapes nature awareness. RMK manages 38% of Estonia’s forests.

Further information:
Toomas Väät
RMK Silviculture Head Specialist
Tel: +372 676 7520, +372 520 5734
E-mail toomas.vaat@rmk.ee

Mari-Liis Kitter
Head of the Communication Department of RMK
Tel: +372 676 7033, +372 514 5954
E-mail mari-liis.kitter@rmk.ee