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N 9 (May 1998)
MEETING WITH TIMBER COMPANIES WAS INTERRUPTED BY BOMBING THREAT May 5, Moscow, Russian NGOS and Finnish timbering companies ENSO and UPM Kummenne meeting was held. Among Russian NGOs were Socio-ecological Union, Student Druzhina Nature Protection Movement, Biodiversity Conservation Center, Greenpeace Russia, WWF Russian program office, "Green Druzhina" of St. Petersburg University, Student Nature Protection Organization of Karelia, North West zapovedniks and nature parks representatives. The issue remained the same - environmental NGOs demands for valuable old-growth forests conservation. Timber companies received new precised version of valuable old-growth territories map. This map will be a kind of guide for loggers though ENSO stated again that "green" demands have only 50% weight in timber purchase decision making, the other 50% are market demands, prices and other economic conditions. The meeting outcome was agreement on NGO representatives participation in companies inspections of their timber providers in Karelia and Leningrad region. The Finns also will consider opening information on their providers at Karelian isthmus. The peaceful span of the meeting was interrupted by security information that Leningradskaya hotel where the meeting took place was mined, so summit was to relocate. "GREENS ARE GUILTY" CAMPAIGN CONTINUES This time it is not Forest Service officer nor Karelian government representative - it is a letter by Pyaozero local administration head and trade union "Pyaozersky lespromkhoz" chairman published in "Lesnaya Gazeta" (The Forest Newspaper). The accusations put forward are rather common, at least for CIS countries. Environmental NGOs are to blamed for upcoming unemployment, caused by planned reservation of Kalevala and Paanayarvi national parks territories and banning of clearcutting within the places. The authors Babak and Ivanov do not see any value of the forests chosen for reservation, calling term "old-growth" a hypocrisy and cover for technical "over-ripe" which means that all these trees are to be cut as soon as possible. In attempts to reserve these forest they see only roaches of foreign economies trying to wipe Russia and Karelia in particular out of timber market. Finnish park "Oulanka" is taken as an example - it is 4 times smaller than "Paanayarvi". Local head and trade union chairman are wondering why the cunning foreigners are trying to find valuable forests in Russia while within own countries the clear-cut everything except 2,5 % of protected territories. The letter ends up also in traditional style appealing to state security entities - FSB (former KGB) that it is a high time to work the situation with rampant NGOs out. Unfortunately, as we already stated, this is not the only time greens are accused of all kind of wild things starting from lobbying certain companies interests up to espionage. PEOPLE DYING IN FOREST FIRES The winter "dead season" for Russian Forestry and Fire services came to an end. As the spring came, the number of forest fires rose acutely. According to the information given by Russian Forestry Service, two people died already putting out the forest fire near Chita. The situation stays complicated, as some fire spots are not distant from the city, the smoke is felt even in Chita. Last year forest fires brought so many human victims - mainly because of funding lack. But this year prospects do not look any better. WE A HERE TO CUT NOT TO PROTECT RIGHT That what the Federal Forest Service should do, according to its head, Valery Shubin. " The Federal Forest Service main task is to provide annual estimated cut fulfillment" - that is, to make the most possible cutting allowed per year - that is what V. Shubin said meeting writers working on forest issues. And this is not the first time when Forest Service highest officers are stressing cutting, not forest management as their main task. In reality, according to Russian legislation, Forest Service and its entities do not have right for commercial logging. Nevertheless, last year made Forest Service the largest timbering entity ending up year 1997 with 21 mln cubic meters of timber logged.
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