Sustainable Forest Management for Greener …...The Context • Georgia's total territory – 6.95 m...
Transcript of Sustainable Forest Management for Greener …...The Context • Georgia's total territory – 6.95 m...
Sustainable Forest Management for Greener Economies
Results: Georgia
The Context
• Georgia's total territory – 6.95 m ha • 43% 3 m ha – recorded as forest areas • 40% (2.75 m ha ) actually covered with forests • about 2.2. m ha - classified as state forests
40% of the Country is covered by forest:
• 5% are absolutely
natural
• 40% maintain initial
structure
Destruction of forests
19th century
1990s
non-sustainable wood-
cutting
CountryTotal Area
1000 sq. m
Percentage
share
Timber volume
mln. cub. m
Registered
woodcuts
mln. cub. m
Armenia 450 15.1 45 0.054
Azerbaijan 1214 14.0 113 0.045
Georgia 2773 39.8 452 0.423
General Data on Caucasus Forests
The forest fund of Georgia is presently the state property. The main authorised governing bodies of state forest fund are: • National Forestry Agency • Agency of Protected Areas
National government institutions play a central role in planning, decision making and enforcement monitoring. Government acts as owner, manager and regulator. The National Forestry Agency is responsible for formulating policies and strategies as well as managing the forests. Local self-governing bodies have certain rights and responsibilities over forests but their nature and scope is not clear.
Georgian Forestry Concept December 2013
“For the purpose of solving existing problems in the forestry sector, facilitating poverty alleviation and well-being of the population and promoting sustainable development of the country the goal of the Concept shall be establishing a system of sustainable forest management which will ensure: •improvement of quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the Georgian forests, • protection of biological diversity, •effective use of the economic potential of forests taking into account their ecological values, • public participation in forest management related issues • fair distribution of derived benefits.”
Assessment of Georgian Forestry Concept By Project stakeholders
Overall the recently developed forestry concept/strategy for Georgia was evaluated fairly well against Green Economy principles by participants. The weakest aspects of the strategy related to: • the promotion of wood energy and employment
creation/private sector engagement. The strongest aspect of the strategy related to: • ecological health, with inclusive policy processes, and • sustainable forest management. It also calls for revising the ownership of forests but does not give clear idea how to do it.
Recommendations • Establishment of adequate institutional structure
• Increase indirect use of forests
• Develop infrastructure - Enhancing the motivation of population
• - Promotion of local production of decorative plants for greening the cities
• Increase access to forest services
• Develop labelling and certification systems for forest products.
• Increase the forest roads network (developing cable lines for taking out wood)
• Promote the development and implementation of green building standards
Pillar A: Promoting increased and sustainable production and consumption of forest products
Recommendations • Promote rational and effective use of forest resources (both
timber and non-timber resources)
• Promote the substitution of non-renewable and high-carbon materials and energy by renewable and low-carbon alternatives
• Introduce modern technologies
• Maximise the share of fuel wood (renewable) resources in an energy balance, taking into account their finite resources.
• Improve the infrastructure for preventing fires
• Study the impact of climate change on forests and develop relevant recommendations
Pillar B. Forestry contributing to a low carbon economy.
Recommendations • Prepare qualified personnel through: - Trainings and seminars; - Carrying
out partner and exchange programmes.
• Establish coordination mechanisms among other educational institutions (universities, colleges, etc.) and employers
• Promote tourism development- Develop tourism infrastructure in the forests; - Support efforts to attract visitors.
• Promote simplification of the use of forest resources for the private sector and their availability
• Carry out complete and systemised inventory of forest resources and services
• Offer investment schemes and means for the forest sector
• Develop different models and schemes (private, state, community) of forest management
• Establish economic and market instrument for forest sector management
Pillar C. Promoting more and better green jobs and improved forest based livelihoods.
Recommendations • Increasing the territories covered with forest, Renewal of degraded forest.
Increase in productivity of forests resulting in 20% increase in reserves of wood resources.
• Renewal of other degraded territories
• Improvement of ecological state of forest, Protection of biodiversity.
• Improve monitoring and early warning of forest pests and diseases
• Improving sanitary situation
• Attention to the regeneration measures of the forests, especially to the rare and endangered species
• Elimination of illegal logging
• Attracting investments (revenues): - Establishment of subsidiary enterprises; - hunting farms; - plant nurseries: fast-growing plants
• Increase the role and importance of the forest sector and make it visible in the economy of the country, consequently with its possibilities to contribute in the green economy
Pillar D. Ecological maintenance and enhancement – long term provision of Forest Ecosystem Services.
Recommendations • Develop sustainable forest state policy
• Develop Action plan for the forest sector in a green Economy including public participation and periodic revision, intended to achieve multiple use and sustained yield of the forest
• Enhance cross-sectoral cooperation and coordination and coherence between forest policy and other policies that affect forests and forestry
• Improvement of legislative bases for establishing and implementing the principles of sustainable management and green economy and for preventing illegal cuts and stopping the destruction of forests
• Strengthening the monitoring
• Balanced participation of state, non-governmental and private sector
• Raising public engagement
• Modernisation of material-technical bases
Pillar E. Policy development and monitoring of the forest sector in relation to a green economy
Sustainable Forest Management for Greener Economies
Process Documentation: Georgia
National Workshops
Representatives of: • Ministry of Environment Protection and Natural
Resources • Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development • Ministry of Energy • NGOs, • Forestry Agency
Tbilisi, June 9-11, 2014
(23 participants)
Tbilisi 11-12 February, 2015
(22 participants)
Local Workshops Mtskheta, 19 September 2014
(21 participants) Kutaisi, Georgia, 22 September 2014
(24 participants) Ozurgeti, Georgia, 23 September 2014
(23 participants) Batumi, Georgia, 24 September 2014
(18 participants) Representatives of:
• National Forestry Agency
• Forestry Services
• NGOs
• Universities
Process: Methods
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Challenges Time Constraints
(one day per local workshop)
Wrong timing (for foresters the winter period is better)
Green Economy is a new concept
Engagements (more efforts and time needed to involve wider spectrum of
stakeholders)
Benefits
Participatory methods enable full participation
High level of interest
in the regions
Recommendations form local workshops
Ensure local perspective while
developing forest policy documents
Ensure local participation in the future processes related to the SFM
issues for the green economy
Better timing for future projects when involving foresters
Highlights All topics were taken with interest, but the
creation of green decent jobs is ranking highest at
the local level
Trainings are considered important to raise the
qualification of the staff of the forest services
Thank you for your attention!