Forest Club model projects and sites

Issue 20, April 2002

Once again forests in Russia became a part of political and economic games. The new team of nature resources ministry one more time is chanting old slogan - let's cut more. In practice this means raising annual logging amount up to 500 mln cubic meters. This idea immediately found support within left-wing part of Russian Parliament. Communist leader Zjuganov was very optimistic about logging more timber.

It is clear that forest sector of the economy should be profitable, but somehow all discussion is always held around only one issue - cutting and exporting more roundwood.

If the country sees itself as more or less developed, it should shift from raw log export to deeper wood processing. Even if international market is not waiting openly for Russian processed wood products, internal market of construction and furniture is booming.

Russian timber industry should pay more attention to local consumers, but currently Russian State policy is aimed on logging and exporting raw timber.

The Ministry of nature Resources, the heir of Russian Forest Service, was meant to manage efficiently all the wealth it in inherited.

However, we are witnessing quiet opposite developments. According to our information sources in the late March in Pushkino, Moscow region, was held a conference. There the plans of the new Deputy Minister of Natural Resources Mr.Roschupkin were announced. Unfortunately these plans make evident that the new Deputy Minister who is responsible for the forest service (having absolutely no experience in this sphere - he started his career as person responsible for municipal services) is interested in neither future reforestation works nor stale inability to conduct anti-fire measures. Mr.Roschupkin announced an ambitious program of complex examination of effectiveness of forest management in Russia. The idea of the examination is that representatives of some other RCNR will inspect every Regional Committee of Natural Resources (RCNR). The most exciting business trip is waiting for Mordovian RCNR officials - they will be sent to Chechnya.

The question was who would pay for these exercises remained unanswered. Mr.Deputy Minister was actually rather annoyed by that question, reminding that lately the real condition of the Ministry was coma, and obviously no progress in problem solution was happening.

At the same time there was confirmed an information about enforcement of the pilot forest credit treaty between Russia and the World Bank. It was signed after several years of WB pushing for it, and was almost considered dead.

Actually now the World Bank is in a difficult position. It has an outdated project on its hands, as something that the project was aimed on - Forest Service - no longer exists. There is only Ministry of Nature Resources, finishing up the remains of the deceased Russian forestry system. However, this very Ministry insists on its leading role in distributing the funds aimed to help to reform Russian forest industry, though among Ministry priorities is increasing of export of wood, not timber, that is completely insufficient for the country that want to have modern, restructured and developed forest industry.

The Minister of Nature resources Mr Artukhov became famous for "managing" resources of his previous work place - the Road Fund, so well, that no money for road construction was left. Actually, this was one of the reasons why mr.Artyukhov had to move to Nature Resources Ministry. Of course, 60 mlns USD from WB is more modest sum of money, but under fair management it be a real help to Russian Forestry.

Or again this money will be spent to insure Central Russia from tsunami, to buy fire-extinguishing boats for Leningrad oblast or to buy coffee-set for the ministry.

The only hope is that Russian forest sector consists not only of the Ministry but of forest businessmen too. They begin to understand that it is much more profitable to sell a processed timber than a raw wood. And they ask the government for only one thing - do not obstruct their work.