Russian Forest Update # 44-45
12/28/99
*******************************
RELAYED TEXT STARTS HERE:
Title: Forest Update # 44-45
Source: Russian NGOs Forest Club and Socio-Ecological Union
Informational Coordination Center
http://www.ecoline.ru/forest-club/f-news-e/index.htm
Status: Copyright 1999, contact source for permission to reprint
Date: December 28, 1999
Byline: V. Zakharov
Z. Garkun
O. Berlova, V. Kolesnikova
* What is happening to biodiversity in Karelia
* Far East news
* SOS! Belorussian natural parks in danger!
* Russian certification debates
* SEU Forest Program has been launched
* Stora-ENSO: moving towards sustainability?
What is happening to biodiversity in Karelia
October 12-13 Seminar "Sustainable development of the Nothern
European forest sector" was held in Petrozavodsk.
This workshop was aimed at strengthening cooperation between
authorities, timber companies, NGOs, financial institutions on the
regional and national level.
Many different and sometimes completely opposite views on the forest
use practices in the region were brought up during the meeting.
Biodiversity conservation in the regional forests traditionally was
one of the most controversial parts of the discussion.
NGOs got one more confirmation of the fact that biodiversity
degradation in Karelia was not considered by the official experts as
the real problem.
Representatives of the Karelian Greens Association drew the attention
of the meeting participants to the problem of the destruction of the
oldgrowth forests ecosystems. After two days debate official and
business experts agreed on the term "structural change of
biodiversity" instead of "degradation" and other definitions of the
nature destruction process taking place in the region as a result of
unsustainable forest use.
It was also stressed by ecologists that the dialogue between
environment NGOs, authorities and forest industry should be continued
in order to provide more ecologically, economically and socially
sound ways of the forest use.
Contact: Dmitriy Rybakov, Karelian Greens Association e-mail:
greens@karelia.ru
Far East News
October 18-19 Conference "Public participation in the forest
conservation in Khabarovskiy kray was held in Khabarovsk.
It was organized by the "Taiga's Rangers" with the help of Pacific
Environment Resource Center. One of the most controversial issues for
the discussion with the local authority representatives was the
industrial use of the Upper Sukpay forests by Rimbunan Hijau.
Plus to it company keep violating national laws, regulations and
logging rules.
The last example: according to the information from the Sukpay
leskhoz (The Forest Service local branch) the activities of Rimbunan
Hijau had been stopped once in October. Special state commission
obliged the company to modify the logging practices. The reason was
that inspectors found out that Rimbunan loggers felling the trees
left them laying among the standing ones. In several days company
reported that the problem had been solved.
SOS! Belorussian nature is in danger!
New protest campaign is underway
Belorussia is a part of the former USSR. It has been always famous
for its wild nature. The country now is in the dictator's hands of
former communist Lukashenko. Resource extraction and industrial
development policy turned the protected areas into clear-cuts and
safari roads.
Government changed the status of the strictly protected areas to the
national parks, started logging and providing hunts here. Forests are
cut for the needs of domestic bureaucrats and rare animals are hunted
by the rich European tourists.
SEU is planning now to start campaign to safe the Belorussian nature.
International participation will be crucial!
Russian certification debates
International conference on the certification in forest management
was held in October in Novgorod city, which is in the northern part
of central Russia. WWF and Novgorod Center for certification of
forest management organized the meeting. Novgorod, one of the
timber-exporting regions of Russia, is today among the pioneers of
the FSC certification process in the country. Forest certification is
a part of the regional Concept of the Social and Economical
Development.
Meeting the ecological standards is considered by the regional
responsible bodies as an essential part of contemporary forest
management. It is brought out by new market trends towards
environment sustainability in the sector.
Timber consuming countries such as Germany and Netherlands want to be
sure that the products they buy are grown and processed in socially
and environmentally sound way, - says Alexey Yaroshenko, Greenpeace
Russia forest campaigner.
He pointed that the most attention is drawn now to the problem of
criminal logging and export practices and to clear-cuts in the areas
of protected species inhabitation.
According to the new Russian Forest Code, certification of the forest
management should be introduced everywhere in the country. The State
Forest Service is working out the process guidelines now.
Although new forest management standards will hardly meet NGOs
expectations as public experts have now to stay out of this
discussion.
The Republic of Karelia, Archangelskiy oblast', Khabarovskiy kray and
other regions of Russia are also willing to participate in
certification process. The main problem now is to agree on the
mechanisms and standards. Many international and Russian experts
participated in the conference recommend the Government to create
coordination body on the federal level to combine different
certification systems in order to stop the argument and make the
process sustainable.
Contact: Novgorod center for certification, e-mail:
yakovlev@stil.telecom.nov.ru
Next year SEU is launching The Forest Program
Joining the efforts of the activists working separately now is the
main focus of the initial stage of the program.
General program tasks:
* to form and develop the civil movement for the forest conservation
and sustainable use;
* to create the information system to collect and distribute forest
campaign updates, success stories in the field and other essential
tools for activists and all the concerned people;
* to enhance the cooperation between Russian, CIS and foreign NGOs
and grass-roots for the sake of the forest movement in general;
* to provide the assistance in fundraising for young forest
conservation SEU member groups and other NGOs;
* to educate young groups and activists;
* to raise public awareness in the forest conservation and use
issues.
Contact: Vladimir Zakharov, forestnews@glasnet.ru
Stora-ENSO policy in Russia: facts and statements
Scandinavian company, which buys 16 per cent of its raw timber in
Russia, presented its view on sustainable forest management.
Stora-ENSO is not planning to expand its logging moratorium areas.
Company will preferably buy timber, which passed independent and
volunteer certification.
Representative of Russian NGOs Forest Club Michael Karpachevskiy
addressed the most controversial point of the discussion about
ecologically and socially responsible forest management - public
participation in the decision making process.
He said that sustainability in the forest sector could not be
achieved without providing permanent consultations with public.
Otherwise companies might face many problems operating in Russia.
Stora-ENSO logging activities in Pyaozerskiy region of Karelia where
the most valuable natural forests of European Russia are located has
already lead to a conflict between NGOs and the company.
Ecologists drew the attention of General Prosecutor to the problem
and urged the autiorities to check the congruence of Pyaozerskiy
forestry service and Karelian forest committee activities with
national nature protection laws.