Basic principles of forest management in Belarus

Forestry of the republic functions in the conditions of exclusive state ownership on the forests, the centralized forest management and wood exploitation.

In Belarus the basic principles of the organization of forest exploitation are defined by the following normative documents:

• The state program of development of forestry of Republic of Belarus for 2011-2015;

• National strategy of sustainable development of Republic of Belarus;

• Forest Code of Republic of Belarus.

The called documents have defined the following purposes at the organization of forest exploitation:

• rational, inexhaustible and continuous use of the forests.

• providing of a relatively constant forest management within the forest Fund for subjects of forestry.

• implementation of ecologically sound (nature compatible) forest exploitation

To fulfill the above goals, the following tasks are solved:

• the organization of forest exploitation according to functional purpose of the woods: accounting of belonging of plantings to certain groups and categories of the woods;

• scientifically sound methods for determining forest management (planned cut) to ensure its sustainability and relative stability that is when conducting basic forest management with the supervision of the legislative bodies;

• observance of principles of multi-purpose forest exploitation, i.e. rational consumption by society not only of wood, but also food and medicinal resources (mushrooms, berries, medicinal raw materials, etc.), as well as other salutariness (carbon dioxide binding, the water preserving, soil-protective functions, etc.) of forest plantings;

• ensuring of reliable restoration and further reproduction of the woods;

• observance of ecological requirements at the organization of multi-purpose forest exploitation: preservation of the forest environment, biological diversity, minimization of damage of a ground cover etc.;

• gradual optimization of the natural structure of forest fund according to modern and perspective requirements of the national economy, account of conditions of the place of growth of plantings, economic and ecological requirements and opportunities of cultivation of forest stands;

• optimization of the assortment structure of forest cutting in accordance with the needs of the national economy and the demands of the global timber market;

• gradual optimization of age and turns of fellings as a technical tool for ensuring the most valuable assortments, achievement of the highest economic indicators of forest exploitation and its greening;

• rational complex use of wood and other products received at forest exploitation (for this purpose the organization of full deep processing of wood for the purpose of receiving production with the highest share of value added, full recycling, including for needs of power is carried out);

• expanded use of forests to fulfill their recreational potential;

Realizing the principles of steady forest management and forest exploitation in practice, forestry enterprises provide not only continuous forest exploitation within an annual wood growth, but also economic security of state, stability of functioning of the national economy.

Forest exploitation makes an economic basis of forest management and determines the level of its intensity. It is presented by different types of use with prevalence of harvesting of wood.

Harvesting of woods is carried out during the main cuttings as well as during intermediate using – fellings for forest care, selective sanitary fellings and fellings for reconstruction. Also сuttings for updating and formation (rearrangement) of plantings, sanitary felling, cleaning of littered plots , clearing of the forest areas for construction of pipelines, roads, power lines and communication, other objects

Logging activity

For 2016 in the system of the Ministry of Forestry from all kinds of cuttings 15.1 million cubic meters of liquid wood were harvested with a planned volume of 12.5 million cubic meters, which amounted to 120% of the reported task.

Taking into account increase in demand for forest production, the need for elimination of consequences of adverse weather conditions – wind or snow breakages, the drying-out fir groves, the development of burnt areas and burnt woods, the volume of "realizable" wood prepared in 2016 was 111,8% to the level of last year.

Today in the organizations of Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Belarus there are 189 harvesters, 256 forwarders, 633 vehicles for transport of assortments, 1167 load-haul-dump machines and other equipment. For 2016, 10 harvesters, 10 forwarders, 24 machines for loading and transport Belarus MPT-461.1, 39 vehicles for transport of assortments and other logging equipment for the sum of more than 22,3 million rubles were acquired.

For the year 2016 the industry has reached the level of mechanized timber harvesting from the total amount of preparation of wood to 46,0%. The total volume of timber harvesting by harvesters in the industry amounted to 6935,4 thousand cubic meters.

Wood processing

Currently in the system of the Ministry of Forestry 70 shops and 6 workshops sections carry out woodworking activity.

Within implementation of Program of industrial development of woodworking productions of the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Belarus for 2015-2020, approved by the resolution of the Collegium of the Ministry of forestry of 24 December 2014, to technical re-equipment of woodworking productions in 2016 was directed the sum of 14,2 denominated million rubles.

In 2016, 22 projects including the following directions were realized: modernization of sawing productions – 5 projects; installation of the positional equipment – 10 projects; creation of production on release of dried products – 1 project, the installation of equipment for the production of logs (debarked) products -2 projects; the establishment of production facilities for the manufacture of wood fuel - 4 projects.

5785,7 thousand cubic meters (117,4%) of wood fuel, including 1745,8 thousand cubic meters of fuel chips are prepared. 5669,2 thousand cubic meters of wood fuel, including 1782,2 thousand cubic meters of fuel chips are sold

For the year 2016 realization of rounded forest products by forestry enterprises of branch in domestic market amounted to 9,3 million cubic meters (107% compared to the same period last year), including 6,0 million cubic meters of timber or 65% or 65% of total sales, 3.3 thousand cubic meters of firewood, or 35% of total sales.

In comparison with the same period of last year the volume of realization of timber has increased by 0,8 million cubic meters, or for 15%. Significantly increased the demand in 2016 to paper wood and technological raw wood.

Realization of timber in domestic market for the current year amounted to 365,9 thousand cubic m. and increased compared to the same period last year by 10.2 thousand cubic meters, or 103%.

The HOT LINE concerning services on logging 8-017-200-3-200