BIALOWIEZA, Poland—When Poland sought to ease tensions with the European Union by declaring a halt to logging in the ancient Bialowieza forest, the damage had already been done, shows official data.
The woodland, a UNESCO World Heritage site that is home to the largest roaming population of European bison and some of the continent’s oldest trees, is emblematic of the rift between the EU executive and the nationalist party ruling Poland since 2015.
