The Gipuzkoa Forest Association (GEBE) released these figures following the re-election of Julián Unanue as president at its XLI Ordinary General Assembly held at the Soreasu cinema in Azpeitia. GEBE represents 2,818 of the territory's 10,400 forest owners, managing a total of 51,191 hectares, which is 41.6% of Gipuzkoa's forest area.

Unanue, a founding member of GEBE in 1984, first took office as president in July 2022 and has now been re-elected for another four-year term as the sole candidate.

Currently, deciduous species dominate Gipuzkoa's forests (51.6%), compared to 48.4% conifers, which are primarily used for timber production. Last year, 667,000 cubic meters of wood were felled, 97.2% of which came from coniferous species, mainly 'pino insignis'. A total of 1,441 felling requests were approved, affecting 2,718 hectares.

The area covered by 'pino insignis' has significantly declined since 2018. Following recent logging, much of which was impacted by the brown strip disease, only 20,997 hectares of this species remain in the territory, with just 15,000 hectares comprising mature trees.

After pine, the Atlantic mixed forest is the most extensive forest type, covering 20,672 hectares. This is followed by beech forests (18,624 hectares) and native oak ('quercus robur') with 9,456 hectares.

GEBE's primary concern in recent years has been the abandonment of forestry activities. The association aims to address this through "active silviculture and sustainable forest management with corresponding certification." To this end, it has launched the Baso Kudeaketa Bermatua (BKB) service, under which it has signed 21 contracts to manage nearly 200 hectares.