By special legislation, enacted in 1860 and 1882, however, the special cases of torrential action were taken care of in a special manner, which will be set forth in [following pages]. The reboisement law of 1882 authorizes the administration to acquire by expropriation mountain forests or mountain slopes needed for reforestation for the sake of safeguarding them and preventing torrential damage.
For Algiers, the same authorization to expropriate was extended by law of 1903 to include all such areas on which according to the Code forestier the administration might forbid clearing, and such extension is advocated for the mother country.
As a rule the administration has been able to avoid expropriation and secure the territories by voluntary sale at less than $10 per acre.
At present, the forest service is under the Minister of Agriculture as President of the Forestry Council, with a Director-General as Vice President and technical head, and three Administrateurs Vérificateurs généraux, chiefs of the three bureaux into which the administration is divided, each with two chiefs of sections, Inspectors, and the necessary office staff. For purposes of the local administration the forest area is divided into 32 conservations, each under charge of a Conservateur equivalent to the German Oberforstmeister. These are again subdivided into Chefferies or Inspections, two to twelve in each conservation, which are administrative units, under the supervision of Inspectors (200) and Assistant Inspectors (210). In addition, a special service for forest-organization and reboisement employs 14 inspectors and some 20 assistants. The forest districts or cantonments (ranges) finally are under the direct charge of Gardes généraux (162), with the assistance of Gardes généraux stagiaires (67) and underforesters or guards (Brigadiers) (3,650); altogether a personnel of over 4,400 officials. While this is a larger force per acreage, yet the expense for personnel per acre is less than one-half that of the Prussian forest administration, and one-quarter of that in several of the other German state administrations.
In 1909, a reorganization was effected improving to some extent the salaries.
The legislation of 1909 also further strengthens State influence by placing certain private properties under the control of the Administration, and allowing the latter to undertake the management of private properties at the request of owners for a consideration.
The budget for 1911 places the total expenditure for the Forest Administration at 3 million dollars (98 cents per acre), of which 950,000 for reboisement and other improvement work. The receipts for the last five years have averaged near 7 million dollars, so that a net result of $1.60 per acre seems attained, considering the expense of reboisement as new investment.
4. Work of Reforestation.
The most noted work of the forest administration, and one for which it deserves high credit, has been that of the reclamation of waste lands, of which, in 1879, it was estimated there were still 20,000,000 acres in extent. Especially the “reboisement” work in the Alpine districts, as a result of the law of 1882, has become celebrated.