These forests not only have an important role to play for people in the area and irreplaceable indigenous biodiversity, but also a major impact on the global climate system.
Forty percent of Russia's vast forest resource remains inaccessible to logging due to the mountainous landscape and the lack of infrastructure. Where these factors are not a problem for logger, areas are logged heavily and often apparently illegally. This is particularly evident around railroads and population centres and in Siberia and the Russian Far East. Many areas that have been clear cut, and particularly those located on the fragile permafrost north of the Amur River, have become virtual deserts because of the extreme cold and thin soil layers.
Vast amounts of timber are exported from the Russian Far East and Siberia annually. While it is difficult to gather exact export numbers, a clear trend is apparent; the export of raw logs to the Asian-Pacific countries has increased, while the export of sawn wood and wood chips has decreased.
Source: www.illegal-logging.info, www.prinas.org |
