Published by Russian NGOs Forest Club
and Socio-Ecological Union Informational Coordination Center
N 40 (june 1999)
SAKHALIN ATTRACTING INTERNATIONAL ATTENTION
The NGO conference "Protection and use of Sakhalin forests" was held
through May 28 to 30, organized by the Sakhalin Environmental Watch and
Greenpeace Russia.
It gathered NGOs from Sakhalin, Kamchatka, Vladivostok, Komsomolsk
on Amur
and international organizations - Friends of the Earth (Japan), Scott
Polar Research Institute, MacArthur Foundation, Socio - Ecological
Union.
The conference was also attended b official and science
representatives. Besides discussion on the Sakhalin forest problems,
participants visited logging sites and forest transportation road
built within the spawning river watershed protection area. The
conference adopted a resolution on the Sakhalin forestry state,
reflecting NGO opinion on the different problems of
the area. To offer the solution conference also adopted a set of
recommendations.
To receive more info, contact Alexey Yaroshenko (GP - Russia)
alexey@greenpeace.ru
Dmitry Lisitsyn (Sakhalin Environmental Watch)
watch@sakhmail.ru
FSC WORKING GROUP ESTABLISHED IN RUSSIA
On 3rd-4th June the Conference on establishing Russian FSC working
group took place in Pushkino near Moscow. The Conference was initiated by
Russian FSC initiative group and organized by Russian NGOs Forest Club and WWF
Russian Program Office. There were about 50 participants in the
Conference from different regions (particularly from Komi, Krasnojarsk and
Khabarovsk regions where regional FSC initiatives are under progress). A number
of NGOs, governmental structures and scientific institutions were
presented, as far as some labor union and indigenous people representative.
However, the main weakness of the Conference was, once again,
practical absence of interested forest busyness representative. In fact, the situation of
the last October WWF Petrozavodsk Conference was repeated: just two
persons do represent some forest companies (from Leningrad and from
Moscow regions) plus two more persons may be in some extend regarded
as forest busyness - one guy from consulting company and Mikhail
Malkevich from Krasnojarsk forestry institute. The rest were just well-known faces
from NGO community and bureaucrats from different near-Forest-Service structures and
forestry science. Honestly saying I was feeling myself in the same
environment as in Petrozavodsk half a year ago: the same faces, the
same speeches.
However, there were a few interesting things like speeches of the
Krasnojarsk people. It looks like there is a big progress in
Krasnijarsk FSC initiative since Petrozavodsk.
As a formal result, the national-level working group for Russia has
been established. Its main functions will be the coordinating of the
regional working groups, providing information and development the
general framework
FSC national criteria as far as providing information for regional
groups.
For current coordination between meetings the Coordination Committee
has been established. From my conversations with different persons I
have clarified, it seems to me, the main reason forest companies have
so little interest to the FSC process in Russia. There is still no
clear message to them from their partners abroad. The Swedish, Finnish and
other companies importing wood from Russia (one person, for example mentioned
StoraEnso as partner) DO NOT DEMAND (or even mention) the certified
timber from their Russian contractors. This is the main reason and
this should be the main field of our activity. Otherwise, all FSC
process in Russia will result just in endless arguing between Forest
club and WWF.
Written by Dmitry Aksenov
FOREST CLUB - STORAENSO MEETING
As it had been agreed before, representatives of Russian
environmental NGOs met with the StoraEnso representative Veli-Matti
Rytkonen (Manager of Environment, Wood Import) in Sankt-Petersburg on
25th May. There were several participants from the Russian NGOs Forest
Club (Dmitry Aksenov from BCC/SEU, Alexey Grigoriev from SEU, Alexey
Morozov and Alexey Jaroshenko from GP Russia), as far as, Marina Doctorova from
St.Petersburg Green Druzhina and Igor Babanin from St.Petersburg
Greenpeace Support Team.
This meeting had been agreed in the previous meeting in March for
the middle of May, but had been postponed a few times. The UPM-Kummene
representative was also supposed to participate in the meeting but
could not come.
The following question have been discussed:
The updated version of the Murmansk region moratorium map was
presented to StoraEnso which was not passed to them previous time.
Since March we have updated the map sufficiently based on the new
data. Some kvartal have been excluded from the moratorium but also
remarkable number of kvartals have been added. (The updated Murmansk
map will be placed soon in the Forest Club Web site.)
Later we received confirmation that Stora - Enso will continue
support of the logging oratorium also in the Murmansk region.
Problems of moratorium areas expansion, joint inspections and
certification were also discussed at the meeting.
THE WORLD HERITAGE OR ANOTHER HIGHWAY
- a tough choice for Adugeya government
UNESCO is considering option of placing the North Caucasus (North-East Black Sea region) on the World Heritage list. The UNESCO expert
commission worked there from June 7 to June 15 to evaluate the
compliance of the area with the criteria of World Heritage nomination
terms. The commission chief - Martin Price (head of the Mountain Areas
and Environment Protection program from Oxford university, GB) on the work results stated that
Northern Caucasus definitely should be on the World Heritage list.
Indeed, the proposed area is a habitat for more than six thousand
animal and plant species, many of them are endemic (unique). The
commission members themselves saw the richness of the Caucasian nature
- during the expedition into the depth of Caucasian Biosphere Nature
Reserve they observed numerous wild animals, even the bears.
The area planned for nomination includes the Sochi National Park and
the Caucasus Biosphere reserve (situated mostly in Krasnodar region
and Adugeya republic). Lagonaki Plateau - an example of very specific
landscape and unique nature system, attracted special commission
interest. Part of the plateau is a traditional nature use area for
local people - their
cattle are grazing there. Before the commission visit it was proposed
to exclude this
area from the nomination, but the nature use turned to be very
moderate.
Besides that, the areas of traditional nature use are included into
many World Heritage List territories.
Unfortunately, not everything is going smooth and easy - obviously
the Adugeyia authorities (republic where the Lagonaki plateau is
situated) are not excited about being part of the World Heritage.
Instead, they are pushing ahead the project of the highway that
would become the major obstacle for the area to be included into the
World Heritage. Road Lagonaky - Dagomys planned by Adugeya republic
authorities will go through the territory of Caucasian Biosphere
Nature Reserve and will damage irrepearably unique nature system
protected in Caucasian Reserve.
The road is planned over the Lagonaki plateau and Caucasian
Biosphere Reserve highland area - this means heavy use of explosives
to make the road across the mountains, not to mention "regular"
construction related works and traffic of the construction machinery.
The impact of such activities on the protected nature complex hardly
needs explanation.
The SEU of North - West Caucasus, strongly supported by local
population, has been campaigning against the project for several
months.
Thousands of local people signatures were gathered protesting the
project, numerous
actions were held, dozens of publications appeared in the media.
The people outrage with the project, together with desire to protect
their nature heritage, has also a legal basis - the road construction
is illegal according to different RF laws. Local government insists on
highway construction hoping to attract traffic flow through the
republic. In
officials' opinion, benefits from the traffic outweigh the benefits of
having internationally protected nature area.
Up to day the major attraction for people was unique nature of the
region. It is highly questionable if anyone will be attracted to stop
and see gas stations and fast-food services instead of wildlife.
NTFP USE IN SIBERIA
"Non - exhaustive NTFP use of the Siberian forests", gathering for
the first time organizations interested in the issue, was held in Ulan
- Ude (Buriatia). Participants came from NGOs, state entities and
business.
Three days were spent in discussing different angles of NTFP use.
The conference decided to establish "The Siberian Association on NTFP
use", the members are from at least 10 federation subjects'
representatives.
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