NEWS

Subject to the Regulation on the Competition, the envelopes with applications for participation in the federal stage of the competition have been opened on August 19, 2016.

The Organizing Committee has received 30 applications. The members of the working group to review federal stage competition documents examined the completeness of the documents submitted and the accuracy of their execution. Following the results of the working group meeting, 30 participants were admitted to competition, including 28 representatives of the specialized agencies for the forest protection from fires of the Russian regions, the representative of the Forestry Department of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, and the representative of the paraborne fire-fighting service of Avialesookhrana.

As of August 23, 2016 on the territory of the forest reserves of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Tatarstan, due to the local rains, in Kazan the fire danger class reduced to Class II. However, in other districts of the republic, namely, in Aktash Village and Yelabuga, the Vth (extreme) the fire danger class still exists. No wildfires have been recorded on the territory of the republic.

It was found this spring in one of the garden plots in the Zagoryansky Village of the Moscow Region. Suddenly all the birch trunk has covered with dense spider web. It gave cause for the plot owners for concern for the birch’s future, and at the beginning of August they requested the Russian Research Institute for Silviculture and Mechanization of Forestry (VNIILM) to help them to determine the cause of such an abundant web.

For the purpose of birch inspection the research scientist of the Center for the Selected Biotechnologies for Forest Protection of VNIILM, the head of the Laboratory of Forest Protection from Invasive and Quarantine Organisms Yu.I. Gninenko was sent on a business trip. As a result of examinations, he made the following conclusion: “The cause of the dense web is the activity of the core birch moth Argyresthia goedartella. Typically, this insect is quite rare, but in 2016 the moth dramatically increased in its number. So, such web-wrapped birches meet this summer in many districts of the Moscow Region, as well as in Ivanovo Region, Vladimir Region and others”.

In early spring, when trees just begin to awake, the caterpillars of the birch moth feed and develop inside of the catkins of birch and alder. In April, the feeding comes to an end and they move to the trunks, paving their way with a web, where they pupate in cracks in the thick bark. When there are a lot of caterpillars, they can cover the entire trunk with quite dense spider web. According to Yu.Gninenko, the very appearance of this web is not dangerous for the tree, as well as the damages that caterpillars cause to the catkins. Although such catkins die and do not produce seeds, it is not critical for the tree. The caterpillars cannot damage the foliage or trunk. Thus, the birch moth causes the visual damage, disrupting the appearance of the plant, but not causing the significant harm to the tree.

On the territory of the Tatarstan’s forest reserve no such pest is found. For Tatarstan, the damages of plantations caused by gypsy moth, pea-green oak and oak red-barred twist are typical. The Tatarstan forestry experts work out measures aimed at early detection, localization and elimination of foci of these types of pests.

According to the regional forestry dispatch services, over the last weekend (August 20 and 21, 2016) the forest fire-fighting services and involved persons  eliminated 116 wildfires on the total area of more than 32.5 thousand hectares, 71 wildfire was localized on an area of ​​more than 2.3 hectares.

Since the beginning of this year, as of August 22, in Russia more than 9 300 wildfires were eliminated. The main cause of fires is the human factor. In addition, in a number of regions of the Siberian, Far Eastern, Urals, Northwestern and Volga Federal Districts a high storm activity is noted. As a result, the wildfires occur. This year more than 2500 storm fires have already occurred.

As of August 22, on the territory of the Russian Federation 91 wildfire on the total area of ​​2361 hectares is eliminated, including

1. The sanitary state of forests of the Republic of Tatarstan was considered. The concern raises the drying of plants (fir, pine, aspen, and birch) and foci of the needle- and leaf-eating insects and diseases.

2. On the results of the reforestation objects’ technical acceptance in 2016. The quality of forest plantations and the state of seedling and school section of nurseries was considered. The concern raises the state of nursery farms, provision of forest establishments with quality planting material of hardy-shrub species in view of the long lasting dry weather of vegetation period 2016.

3. The information on admission of school leavers to the Lubyansky Forest Engineering College in 2016 and on the recruitment of the institution graduates of 2015-2016 was heard.

Despite the precipitations which took place in certain areas of Tatarstan (Kazan, Bugulma, Menzelinsk), as of August 22, 2016 in the republic there is a 4th class of fire danger. Locally (Aktash Village, Drozhzhanoe, Menzelinsk) the extreme forest fire danger (Class 5) still exists. According to the Hydrometeorological Center of the Republic of Tatarstan the abnormally hot weather will last until August 26.

As of August 19, 2016 in the forests of the Republic of Tatarstan the IV and V (high and extreme) fire danger class exists. No wildfires have been recorded.

According to the regional dispatch control station of Forest Fire Center, on the territory of 28 municipal districts of the Republic of Tatarstan 123 hot spots have been recorded. As they occur the hot spots are daily inspected by fire-fighting experts of the subordinated institutions, and prompt actions to eliminate burnings are taken. The threat of fire spread to the forest reserve lands is eliminated.

The Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Tatarstan No.1724-r “On Restrictions of People Staying and Vehicle Entrance into the Forests” dated 13.08.2016 has been adopted.

In order the subordinate agencies take additional measures the Ministry of Forestry of Tatarstan has provided the letter No.17-5153 dated 17.08.2016 which states:

to arrange together with the bodies of internal affairs the temporary stations in the forest mass populated places;

to increase the frequency of ground patrolling of forests;

to install additional lifting gates;

to make fire-fighting forces and equipment, including the reserve ones, ready to wildfire suppression.

On August 12, 2016 the Federal Labor and Employment Agency has registered the Russian timber industry agreement for 2016-2019 made by and between the Federal Forestry Agency and the Timber and Related Industries Workers’ Union of the Russian Federation on June 27, 2016.

The document specifying the relationships of timber workers and Rosleskhoz with its subordinate agencies has been signed by the Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation – the Head of the Federal Forestry Agency Ivan Valentik and the Chairman of the Timber and Related Industries Workers’ Union Denis Zhuravlev.

This industry agreement applies to the timber industry workers and other economic agents subordinated to the employer and (or) financed by the employer.

This agreement will be a basis for making collective contracts in the sector institutions. The agreement, due to its specific character, is an instrument setting forth the general terms and conditions, on the basis of which the collective contracts will be elaborated at the local level taking into account local specificities.

“Currently, the average salary in forestry, even in the most advanced institutions and enterprises of the industry, remains lower than in other sectors, and this situation must be broken; a system of social guarantees should be established. Recently, we made progress in this direction and achieved the inclusion of service allotments in the legislation – now it is formalized in legislation allowing timber workers to be provided with the forest reserve land plots for the purpose of housing construction. It is necessary to establish and use all possible mechanisms to attract young people into the industry,” commented Ivan Valentik.

The Russian timber industry agreement for 2016-2019 was made for the purpose of the establishment of general control mechanisms of social and labor relations, paying conditions, guarantees, compensation and benefits to the timber industry workers.

The agreement is a legal instrument providing coordination of the interests of employees and employers and setting forth the general paying conditions, guarantees, compensations and benefits to the timber industry workers and other economic agents within the jurisdiction of and financed by the Federal Forestry Agency.

The basis of the Agreement forms the Russian Federation Constitution, federal constitutional laws, federal laws and other rules and regulations of the Russian Federation, the General Terms Agreement among the national associations of trade unions, national associations of employers and the Government of the Russian Federation.

Today a meeting of the Public Council under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Forestry of Tatarstan will be held. The representatives of forestry science, the specialists of the Office of the Ministry of Forestry of Tatarstan will take part in the meeting. The experts will discuss the issues of forest sanitary state, measures to be taken to protect forests from pests and diseases. Also, there will be a report on the training status of the middle-ranking managerial human resources for forestry industry in 2015-2016 and their employment.

As part of the festivities of the 95th anniversary of the Lubyansky Forest Engineering College, the Ministry of Forestry of Tatarstan run a campaign “Vote for the Symbol!” in support of the symbols of Kazan city – the Kazan Kremlin and Kazan Federal University – for their images to be printed on the new Russian banknotes of 200 and 2000 rubles denomination.