1. Promoting Sustainable Forest Management in Russia
Elena Kulikova,
WWF Russia Forest Programme Director

2. Russian Forest Sector: Overall Context

3. Forests of Russia: Wealth and Poverty
Forest sector as a part of resource-based economy
22% of World forests
3% of World timber trade
1 place in World by amount of round wood trade
The lowest stumpage fee in the World
Profit from forest management per 1 ha about 10 times less, than in Scandinavia

4. Global Importance of Russian Forests: Biodiversity and Climate Change Agenda
One of four mega-areas of intact forests in the World (along with Canada, Brazil, and Congo basin)
Russia accounts for 25% of the world's large massifs of intact forests
Russian boreal forests has highest biodiversity and endemism among the other boreal forests in the World
Sink for 15% of global CO2 emissions

5. Map of Russian Intact Forest

6. Key Ecological Problems of Russian Forests
The pioneer “mining” of intact forests massifs is still on-going
Imperfect forest management practice
The biodiversity of commercial forests is decreasing (share of aspen and birch increased up to 30-40% of total area)
As the result of forest fires about 2 mln ha of commercial forests burn every year

7. On-going Reforms in Russian Forest Sector
Forest Code (frame character, about 60 sub-ordinate normative acts needed to be developed)
Maximum decentralization - delivery of responsibilities on forest management to the regional level (re-organization of stricture and staff)
Changing in export tax policy for round wood
Priority investment projects
May, 2008 – new Government, forestry under the Ministry of Agriculture, new Head of FFA

8. Specificity of Forest Reforms Implementation
All they are implemented simultaneously
Short-term period of realization
Lack of information and communications, a lot of uncertainties
Lack of public involvement into decision-making process

9. WWF Russia Forest Programme Priorities
Forest Policy,FLEG and illegal logging
HCVF
Model forests
Certification
GFTN
Forest and Climate

10. Forest Policy,FLEG and Illegal logging

11. Forest Policy
Tools: Public Ecological Council under Federal Forestry Agency and Forest Council under the Ministry of Agriculture
Major problem: low quality of new forest legislation
Developing set of amendments
A scorecard of ecological responsibility and sustainability of forest management of Russian forest regions has been created (by 2010)

12. Status of FLEG Issues
Programme of measures on elimination of illegal turnover of wood, adopted by the Government (February, 2007).
Federal level - set of activities
Regional initiatives
Relevant agencies’ activities (Ministry of Interior, Custom, Transportation, etc.)

13. Status of FLEG Issues BUT…
Due to reforms, uncertainties in legislation, poor practice of law enforcement, etc. scale of illegal logging is raising
There are no regional bodies designated for forest violation control or they are very limited in capacities
Forest guard is abolished and its functions are distributed among 5-9 servicies
Statistic is not available

14. FSC Certification
in Russia

15. FSC standard
 November 11, 2008 Russian national FSC standard got official accreditation.
Development of this standard started in 1998; the last (fifth) version of it was sent to FSC in December 2007.

16. Rate of FSC Certification Growth in Russia
2000 – first certificate in Altaysky Kray - 32,7 thousand ha
2009 – 21 ml ha (North-West, Siberia, Far East)
It comprises 15% of commercial forests
2-nd place in the world
Leads to improved forest management

17. FSC Forest Management Certificates in Russia: Geography

18. FTN Russia as a Driver of FSC Certification

19. Russian Export of Forest Products by Value in 2008
Total Russian Export of Forest Products in 2008:
million USD

20. Problems of Russian Forests
ILLEGAL
LOGGING
LOGGING IN
HIGH
CONSERVATION
VALUE
FORESTS
POOR
FOREST
MANAGEMENT
Russia avoided deforestation,
However there is a lack of high-quality wood in accessible commercial areas

21. Global Forest and Trade Network – Russia
GFTN in Russia was established in 1999 as the Association of Environmentally Responsible Timber Producers
Goal – to eliminate illegal logging and drive improvements in forest management
by encouraging voluntary forest certification
At present, GFTN-Russia consists of 50 participants and 10 applicants,
Which manage near 24.8 million ha of leased forests, or 21% of such forests in Russia

22. GFTN-Russia in 2009
1 – Ilim Group 2 – Arkhangelsk PPM 3 – Volga 4 – Solombala Sawmill 5 – Kartontara 6 – TAMAK 7 – Sawmill – Cherepovetsles 9 – Lesosibirsk Sawmill-1 10 – Solikamskbumprom 11 – SLT – Sawmill – Fankom 13 – Dammers 14 – Swedwood Tikhvin
15 – Siberian Silver Pine – Management 16 – Zalazna Sawmill 17 – VM-Invest 18 – Cardinal 19 – Les Export 20 – Premium-les 21 – Yeniseylesozavod 22 – Arkhangelsk Sawmill-3 23 – Priozersky DOZ 24 – Terneyles 25 – Lesinterkom 26 – Titan-Lesprom 27 – Technoclassik
28 – Mospromstroymaterialy-Vyatka 29 – Pankratov 30 – Primorsklesprom 31 – Primorsky GOK 32 – Serebryanaya Sosna 33 – TMKPerspektiva 34 – Mondi Syktyvkar 35 – Kay 36 – Segezha PPM 37 – Sorvizhi-les 38 – Kata 39 – Malakhit 40 – PLO Onegales 41 – Prizma Holz 42 – Onega Sawmill 43 – Investlesprom 44 – ResursLesTrans 45 – Delta-Plus 46 – Lesprom-Invest 47 – Baikal 48 – Gogohiya 49 – Exportles Co. 50 – Sib-Ekologiya

23. Share of GFTN-Russia Participants in the Russian Forest Export
Pulp & Paper
68%
32%
Fibreboard
35%
65%
Furniture
16%
84%
Shaped wood 6%
94%
Round wood 5%
95%
Sawnwood
13%
87%

24. Voluntary Forest Certification Systems in Russia
FSC certification began in Russia in 2000
FSC National Standard was endorsed in 2008
FSC forest area – 21.5 mln ha
PEFC National Standard was endorsed in 2009
PEFC forest area – 0 ha
FSC controlled wood certification
and other legality verification systems

25. FSC certification Development in Russia
All over the world – > 100 ml ha in > 80 countries
Canada – > 24 ml ha

26. FSC COC Certificates in Russia
2008 – 19, – 11

27. FSC FM certificates The biggest areas : IlimSeverLes – 1 677 413 ha
IlimSibLes – ha
Segezha PPM ha
The smallest areas:
Mospromstroymaterialy-Vyatka – 4263 ha
Lesintercom – 6903 ha
Priozersky lesokombinat – 8707 ha
The biggest certified companies:
Ilim Group – га
Investlesprom – га
Mondi Syktyvkar – га
Siberia – ha (22%)
Far East – ha (6%)

28. FSC Promotion Campaign in Russia
Main goals:
1. To communicate ecological, social and forest management features of certified forests/products, thus influencing the development of purchasing policies of companies and purchasing priorities.
2. To raise up FSC logo recognizability among the interested
parties on a domestic market as a sign of guarantee that the
unwanted timber volumes are minimized and better forest
preservation is secured
Partners:

29. FSC Promotion Campaign in Russia
1 – Work with big customers of forest products (big corporate customers, including banks, with social responsible policies)
2 – State and municipal purchasing (Moscow, St.Petersburg, etc.)
3 – Work with big retailers (office paper, DIY, furniture, etc.)
4 – Work with individual customers (mass media, Internet, social advertising)
5 – FSC logo promotion (among corporate and individual customers, promotion campaign)

30. High Conservation
Value Forests

31. High Conservation Value Forests
Concept is widely used by business in certification process
WWF role: adaptation to the Russian conditions, possible legalization, identification and mapping, management
Cases, geography, practical use
WWF «Key Requirements on HCVF for the FSC Process Participants» - widely using
Number of publications
Attempts of legalization are not successful yet

32. Pskov Model Forest

33. Topical Questions of Russian Forestry
How to ensure sustainable forest management
Profitability of forest use
Social and ecological issues of forest use
Role of forests in different forest-growing zones

34. Pskov Model Forest
System of intensive sustainable management is implemented and demonstrated for the first time in Russia
Priorities:
increased and stable profit,
conservation of biodiversity,
account of interests of local population

35. Nature Conservation Effect of Model Forests
Key question: is it necessary to explore remote primary forests including intact forests?
Idea of intensive sustainable forest management in secondary forests of already explored territories as an alternative of intact forests exploitation
Cluster approach
Already demonstrated ability under Russian conditions (Pskov Model Forest)

36. Forest and Cimate Pioneer demonstrator project in North-West Russia
Forest conservation through the retiring of harvesting concessions – creation of regional protected area – decision of regional administration
Improving harvesting practices – forest harvesting company Svetlozerskles - FSC
GDNI- expertise on LULUCF
FCNI – membership in Advisory Board on green standards

37. Education, Training, Publications
Text book on sustainable forest management for secondary school
Text book on sustainable forest management for Higher Education
“Sustainable Forest Management” Journal