There are now plans to double the total overall volume of replanted forest to 800,000 hectares. This area will include Baikal natural territory, which was previously heavily damaged by wildfire.
Between 2011 and 2013, Russia had on average lost an area of forest equivalent to the size of Switzerland each year – mostly due to fires (1).
A new forest seed production centre is due to provide up to 10 million seedlings a year to support the restoration.
In a further move to help heal the vital forests, new legislation on forest regeneration is soon expected to be adopted. This will oblige all trees cut down to be compensated by the planting of at least the same amount.
Forests serve as major carbon sinks, helping stem climate change. They provide natural resources, clean the air we breathe, prevent soil erosion and are home to most of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity.
2017 is the Russian Year of Ecology and has seen over 600 events take place across the country in addition to such initiatives in favour of the environment.
Read more about the Russian Year of Ecology here. Boost your knowledge on topical environmental issues and how they affect our daily lives!
UN Environment in Europe brings you #FridayFacts showing how our work concretely helps moves towards sustainable societies, with #noBlabla
[i] World Resources Institute, 2015: http://bit.ly/2zeIzEZ
