On forest management strategy in Russia

Abstract

An analysis of a numerous official documents and publications reveals a serious crisis of forest management in Russia. Collapse of the forest economy has resulted from shocking changes at the end of the 20th century and accepting a new Forest Code, approved in 2006, in which any reference to forestry disappeared. Forest management paradigm, defined by the Forest Code ideologues, will lead inevitably to the Russian forest fund degradation. Meanwhile, forestry is a productive industry, which follows market rules. For this reason, forest management should be reconstructed in Russia. A principle of forestry revival will be impartial ecological and market economic assessment of forest resources, which would be instrumental in transition of the subsidized scheme of forest management financing to a system that would provide rational forestry and a profit. Forestry comprises an inseparable triad: forest inventory, forest economics, and forest management. It is within this triad that more specific issues of rational forestry and sustainable forest use are to be solved. When state­owned forests are under market conditions, it is impermissible to sell forest resources priced below cost of their production. In view of this, market transition of forest use is crucial to establish payments for standing timber based on rental income. This will guarantee the financing of reforestation as well as assignments to the budget at the different levels. Chief reorganization objective of forest management in Russia is outlined as follows: ensuring economic efficiency of the forest sector; sustainable use of forest resources and reforestation; forest conservation for future generations.

Keywords

• organization of forest economy
• forest planning
• forest economics
• sustainable forest use
• restoration of forest resources