Hot Spots
by Russian NGOs Forest Club
Here is the information about the hot problematic forest areas, which requires urgent actions on the Forest Club's
point of view. This may be the old-growth forests under threat, critical situations with antropogenic fires,
dengerous development projects etc. Russian govermental bodies are usually not able to manage the sertain
situations or just do not regard them as problems. Often, only active public involvment can help.
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Paanajarvi-Kutsa area, Russian Karelia
¾The largest Fennoscandian old-growth forest under threat of logging !
The largest old-growth area in Karelia situated north to the Paanajarvi National Park had been identified
by Russian Environmental NGOs in 1996. Last few years it has been not logged because of the logging
moratorium by Stora-Enso, the main buyer of the round wood from the area. Now the main logger in the
northern Karelia, Pjaozersky Logging Company (Pjaozersky Lespromkhoz), got part of the area leased for
logging and plan to start clearcutting 2001. Stora-Enso looks to be ready to withdraw moratorium under excuse
of social problems in Pjaozersky village. However, continuing the today's style clearcutting can not
solve the problems, environmentalists argue.
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Sukpai watershed, Russian Far East
¾ Malaysian Rimbunan Hijau logging instead of nature reserve?
Widely known in the tropics, the Malaysian company Rimbunan Hijau International
Ltd. rented for 49 years a 305 000 hectares large tract of the taiga on the Sukpai Watershed
(Khabarovsk Krai, the Russian Far East). Exactly the same area was suggested by regional
authorities in 1994 for establishing federal level strict scientific nature reserve (zapovednik) "Verkhnesukpaiskiy".
The logging and road construction to the pacific coast threaten the whole taiga ecosystem
of the Sikhote-Alin mountain range, splitting populations of a number of endangered species,
particularly one of amur tiger ¾ the largest cat in the world.
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