On Measures to Implement the Earth Charter Principles Taken by the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Tatarstan

Almas Nazirov spoke at the meeting of the International Scientific and Practical Conference “The Earth Charter is a practical tool for solving the fundamental problems of sustainable development” dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the Earth Charter principles implementation.

In his speech “On Measures to Implement the Earth Charter Principles Taken by the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Tatarstan” Almas Nazirov told about the work of the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Tatarstan concerning a number of key principles of the Earth Charter. “In order to preserve the natural heritage for future generations” from 2011 to 2015 the reforestation has been carried out on an area of ​​more than 11 thousand hectares, including by artificial reforestation. For high-quality and successful cultivation of planting material there are 55 forest nurseries functioning in subordinate institutions of the Ministry. The attention is paid not only to the cultivation of the main forest-forming species, but also to fruit and ornamental species. At year-end 2015, in the republic's basic nurseries 1.7 million units of planting material of fruit and ornamental species have been grown. The foresters also use methods of protective afforestation, stopping the process of soil erosion (in 2014 in the Republic of Tatarstan there were more than 2.2 mln. hectares of the erosion-prone lands). From 2011 to 2015 the area of protective and erosion preventive plantings reached about 11, 5 thousand hectares. In general, it not only provides the agricultural sector of the economy with quality farmland, but also ensures the ecological stability of the region, esthetic and recreational appeal.

Elaborating on one of the most important principles of the Earth Charter “Respect and Care for the Community of Life”, the minister said: “One of the most effective instruments for the conservation of biological diversity is an ever-evolving system of specially protected natural reservations, and researches in the framework of the Red Book of Tatarstan performed on a regular basis. The recent emergence of the nesting of large birds of prey, the growth of population of bear, lynx and other predators, and the stocks of hunting animal species as one of the environment status indicators, and their spread on the territory of the republic show a positive trend in the improvement of the ecological situation in the Republic of Tatarstan”.